


Children of Saturn

by NessieCullen9



Category: Twilight Series - Stephenie Meyer
Genre: F/F, F/M, Multi, Mythology - Freeform, Mythology References, Other, Powerful Bella, Powerful Bella but not OTT powerful, War, Wolf/Vampire, minor Edward bashing - NOT what you think, slow start then high action, warning - brief assault/non-con
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2009-02-11
Updated: 2020-09-03
Packaged: 2021-03-06 16:29:12
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 34
Words: 155,242
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26221918
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NessieCullen9/pseuds/NessieCullen9
Summary: Picks up in early NM. Edward convinced the family to leave Bella, but Jasper goes back to Forks to check on her when he starts questioning Edward's motives (after an amicable breakup with Alice). He discovers a lot more than a heartbroken human. Bella, it turns out, belongs to an endangered species of born-to-be-vampires called Children of Saturn. The good news: Bella could become one of the most powerful vampires in the world. The bad news: Vampires have been taught to fear her kind, and if they cannot claim her for themselves, they will do everything in their power to destroy her. Also posted on FFN, 2009.
Relationships: Alice Cullen/Original Male Character(s), Carlisle Cullen/Esme Cullen, Carmen/Eleazar (Twilight), Charlotte/Peter (Twilight), Edward Cullen/Bella Swan, Emmett Cullen/Rosalie Hale, Irina/Laurent (Twilight), Jacob Black/Original Female Character(s), Jasper Hale/Bella Swan, Leah Clearwater/Angela Weber, Renée Dwyer/Charlie Swan
Comments: 20
Kudos: 159





	1. Different

♂︎(Jasper's POV)

"Why do you keep asking me about Bella?!" Alice snapped at me, her flash of irritation slapping me in the face. "You know Edward told me not to check up on her!"

"That didn't stop you from trying before," I said calmly, trying to calm her down as I spoke. That only made her more irritable.

"Stop messing with me, Jasper!" She snapped in reproof before continuing, "Sure, I tried checking in on Bella a couple times, but after Edward's last visit…"

"That's my point, Alice," I said. "When Edward came by a couple weeks ago, he seemed different… Something isn't right there, Alice. The emotions I was picking up from him made no sense. He was still sad and still grieving, but there was something else… I know you don't want to hear it, but he almost felt relieved… Like he's getting better. It hasn't even been a full three months since we left Forks. None of us expected him to recover so quickly after leaving Bella. Can't you understand why that makes me wonder about Bella? How she is or isn't recovering? If something in her life responsible for Edward's change in attitude? If Edward knows something about Bella that we don't…"

"Jasper, I don't want to talk about Bella right now!" Alice's anger was starting to make me uncomfortable. I was starting to feel irritable too, as I absorbed some of her emotion. I didn't want to end up lashing out at her in response, so I abandoned my course of questioning and changed tact.

"What do you want to talk about, Alice?" I asked her evenly. The change in approach worked. The emotional climate in the room shifted abruptly to sadness, frustration, fear, and anxiety. I wasn't expecting that reaction. I waited for some kind of explanation… and nothing. Alice just stared at me with an ambivalent expression that was somewhat unnerving.

"Alice?" I pressed. She looked down at the floor.

"I saw something, Jasper," she whispered almost inaudibly, even to my ears.

"What did you see, Alice? Why are you so upset?"

"It's about us… About you and me…" Alice's voice was still barely audible. Her emotions were much stronger: Guilt, sadness, fear, uncertainty… It made no sense.

"Alice, what is it?" I encouraged her, "Please, tell me." Alice sniffed, as though she would be crying, were that possible.

"We're going to… break up. We're going to grow apart. It's already started, but… I can't see everything, yet. I just… I don't understand it!" Alice's earlier frustration returned with a vengeance while I gaped at her, stunned by what she was saying. "It happened right after we left Forks. My visions just went haywire! I thought something was wrong with me! I saw all of us coming back up here, to Denali. What was really strange was that I still saw Bella becoming a vampire… I really don't understand that one… Then, I had a vision about you and me. I couldn't believe it was true at first. I was waiting for whatever changed to change back, but it hasn't changed!" Alice finally looked back up at me, and her expression was pained.

"I'm so sorry, Jasper," she breathed. "I saw someone else… The same way I saw you, I mean… When I first saw that I would find you, and that we'd be together. It isn't just me, though! It's you, too! I saw us both finding different soul mates, true mates! I guess what changed was… our souls? Or maybe our true mates just weren't attainable until now… I saw that we'd still be like family to each other, like brother and sister, but… for anything more than that… we aren't right for each other anymore. Or we won't be for much longer, anyway. The vision was in pieces. It wasn't all clear. Too many decisions still have to be made, but… It hasn't changed, Jasper. That's why I've been so upset lately. I… I don't know what to do about this..."

I was frozen. Completely dumbstruck. As a vampire, my mind was much more complex and efficient than a human's, but it still short-circuited as it tried to process Alice's words. I was aware that my mouth was slightly open, waiting for my mind to project some kind of sound through it; a growl, words, anything. Words came first.

"We'll both still stay with the family?" I wasn't entirely sure why that particular question came out first. I suppose it was a sensible question. Alice and the rest of my family were all that kept me to this lifestyle; they were my reason for sticking with the vegetarian diet. I had to know if I was going to be able to hold onto some part of that.

"Yes," Alice said immediately. She paused for a moment and her eyes became unfocused. After a few seconds, she came back out of her vision. "Like I said, I see us becoming more like brother and sister, within our whole family. We'll go our separate ways here and there, we'll each separate from the family at different times. Those parts are a little cloudy, but I see us coming back in the end. We'll still be part of the Cullen family."

"So, I'll…"

"Yes," Alice gave another quick response. "You'll be fine, Jasper." Of course she knew what I was worried about. "You'll stick to the diet. You'll be okay, as far as that goes. You'll still be part of the family. You'll always have that, and it will keep you strong."

"You and me, though?" I asked slowly, still recovering from Alice's revelation. "I don't understand…"

"Nor do I, Jasper," Alice said softly. She walked over to me and took my hands in hers a little tentatively. "It's just what I saw." Alice paused for a moment, and then she let out a frustrated sigh. "Things have felt a little different between us, though… since about the time we left Forks, when I had the vision. That could be self-fulfilling prophecy, I guess, but… maybe not. I still love you, Jasper. I really do, but it just feels…"

"Different," I sighed. I had felt the same thing, of course. For a couple months, I'd felt it… Different. There was really no other way to put it. Something was different. Something had changed and, according to Alice, it wasn't going to change back.


	2. The Shell and the Hole

♂︎(Jasper's POV)

"You're going back to Forks." Alice said as I came down the stairs. It wasn't a question. She'd seen it, of course. It wasn't a question, but I still answered.

"Yes. I need a little space to think after… after what you told me. And I still can't shake this feeling that one of us needs to check on Bella… I probably won't actually show myself to her. I'm not sure how she would take that, since I attacked her the last time she saw me… I'm just going to move back into the Forks house for a while, and I'll just drop by her house at night to see how she's doing."

"Edward won't like it." Alice said.

"He probably won't find out for a while, if at all," I said. "He visits us so infrequently, and he's too wary of seeing Bella again to come to Forks himself. This isn't about Edward anyway… not much, at least. It is true that his odd behavior is part of my motivation to check on Bella, but I'm going back to Forks for my own reasons too."

Alice stood up from where she was seated on the couch and she walked over to me. She hugged me and rested her head on my chest, sighing heavily. "I know that," she said. Something was off: Frustration, worry, sadness, anxiety, confusion… "Call me and tell me how she's doing, okay?" Alice added suddenly.

"Have you tried to see her, Alice?" I asked anxiously, absorbing her emotions. "Is she okay? Is something wrong?"

"I didn't see much," Alice admitted. "I just saw you climbing up to her bedroom window and… turning around and running away." I tensed involuntarily.

"Why am I going to run?" I asked. "She won't be physically hurt, will she? Will Bella be bleeding? Is that why I don't get any closer?" Alice shook her head.

"I recognized the look on your face, Jasper," she said. "You looked the way you do when you… wish you weren't so empathetic." Oh. My gift was a blessing and a curse.

"What makes me run?" I asked Alice. "I mean, are we talking about an uncomfortable amount of lust? Or fear? Worse than that? Is Bella okay?"

"You know I can't see details like that, Jasper," Alice murmured against me, still holding me in her arms. "I… I hope she's okay. Promise you'll call and tell me?"

"I promise," I said, bending down to lightly kiss the top of Alice's head. "I'm taking the eight o'clock flight, tonight. Fewer humans in the airport and on the plane. I was just heading out for a quick hunt, to prepare myself. Come with me?" Alice nodded.

"Tanya and Irina should be on their way back from seeing Laurent off, soon," she said. "I still haven't been able to see why he decided to leave so suddenly."

"I couldn't really care less," I growled softly. Alice pulled away from me and gave me a quizzical look.

"I never liked him either, Jasper," she said, "but what exactly did he ever do to you?" I let out another soft growl. The pixie did have a point.

"Nothing, I suppose," I conceded. "He's just been very withdrawn for a couple weeks now. He's been so happy with Irina since he came here. The change just made me suspicious, I guess. I've also been wondering if he's cheating on the diet. His eyes are still red, after all. They should be gold by now… We've been here for three months, and he came out here a few months before us, when he left James and Victoria… Maybe that's why he's leaving?"

"Perhaps," Alice said thoughtfully. "It's hard to believe he'd choose human blood over Irina, but he's not us, I guess… Maybe finding a mate isn't reason enough for him." I almost growled again. Filthy nomad. If I could give up human blood, he could. He just didn't want to. If Alice and I were correct in our assumptions, Irina would be upset, but she would be better off in the end. She clearly wasn't Laurent's top priority. She deserved better.

"Well, let's go," Alice said after a moment. "You need to hunt." Alice took my hand and pulled me out the door even as she spoke. As we stepped out into the Alaskan twilight, I realized how different her touch felt. I still felt love coming from her, but it just wasn't the same. Her hand in mine didn't send an electric current through my arm, and her hand didn't hold onto mine quite as tightly as it once did. Her grip on me was already loosening. She was preparing to let go, knowing that we each had to find someone else to hold onto. I let slip a wistful sigh as we ran through the mountains. I would miss my Alice…

It felt strange, entering the big Forks house alone. Everything was just as we'd left it; not a pillow was out of place. The only thing that was different was the smell. Our scents had almost completely faded. Bella's scent was long gone from the place. Bella… It was a little after midnight. She and her father would surely be asleep. I could think of no reason to not check on her.

It only took me four minutes to run to Bella's house. I stopped when I was still several yards away and stared at the house warily. What Alice had warned me of earlier still disturbed me. A few yards closer, and I would be able to pick up on any emotions coming from the small house in front of me. Bella and Charlie were both asleep. How bad could the emotions coming from two sleeping humans be? They were in a relaxed state. Why would Alice see me running away? Was Bella awake, after all? Would her emotions be stronger? And what on earth would she be feeling…? I moved a few yards closer, and I heard Charlie's voice. He was awake, and talking on the phone by the sound of it. I only heard his voice, speaking without response.

"It's been three months, Renee… I can't think of anything else to try…" That was Charlie Swan? He sounded so different; weary and hopeless. What was going on? "I'm telling you, Renee, it's not like someone left her, it's like someone died! The first month was bad enough! The non-stop crying and barely eating… I still hear her screaming in her sleep every night…" Was it possible for vampires to get nauseous? Charlie was talking about Bella… Not eating, screaming in her sleep… Alice's warning suddenly made more sense. "I'm not sure if this new phase is better or worse. When she was crying all the time, she was at least showing some emotion... Now, it's like night of the living dead around here. Dr. Gerandy has been throwing around words like 'catatonic' and 'comatose'! I swear, Renee, I don't…" This was difficult to listen to. It sounded like Charlie was actually crying! "I don't know who that girl upstairs is, Renee, but she isn't our little girl… She's just… a shell. I don't know what to do…"

There was a long pause in which I assumed Bella's mother was responding to Charlie over the phone. I was frozen on the spot, and I was already considering turning around and running away. What have we done to Bella? What did Edward do to Bella? He never really gave us any details about what he'd said to her… 'A shell,' Charlie called her. It was difficult to imagine Bella that way… She was always so warm, courageous, and loving. If I dared approach her bedroom window, what would I find inside? Did I really want to know?

"Maybe," Charlie's voice murmured in response to something Renee said on the phone. "I'm pretty sure Bells is down for the night, so I'd better take advantage; get some sleep, you know… Yeah, sure. I'll talk to you soon, Renee. Bye." I heard Charlie hanging up the phone and walking upstairs very slowly. I heard a door open slowly, then it shut again and he kept walking. Another door opened and shut, and I heard the creaking of an old bed as he climbed in. The coast was clear for me to check on Bella… if I still wanted to.

After a moment of indecision, I realized I was acting ridiculous. I was behaving like a coward! This was Bella I was dealing with! And I was just going to get close enough to get a look at her and feel her emotions! I'd fought and destroyed countless armies of newborn vampires, and here I was, considering retreating from such a simple task as checking on one human girl! Such action was not an option. I moved closer to the house.

Bella's familiar scent became continually stronger as I neared her window. When I was within easy jumping distance of the closed window, her emotions started seeping out to me. I had been very wrong in expecting her emotions to be dulled by sleep. She was anything but relaxed and peaceful: Desolation, deep despair, fear, confusion… unbearable heartache, loss, emptiness, hopelessness, worthlessness… She felt so horribly… unloved?! No. Certainly Edward didn't tell her that he, flat out, didn't love her! He felt he had to leave Bella behind, but he wouldn't be that cruel! Would he?

Bella's emotions tore viciously at my still heart as I made myself jump up to her window, so I could look inside. I almost didn't jump high enough, though it was an easy distance. Bella's emotions were so incapacitating, they physically weakened me. It was agonizing, and that was before I saw Bella… A shell. A beautiful, broken shell. She was curled into a fetal position atop her bed, above the comforter. No blanket covered her petite frame at all. Her arms were wrapped tightly around her torso, as though she was trying to hold herself together. She looked even paler than I remembered her, the moonlight making her skin look as white as mine inside the dark room. There were deep shadows under her eyes, and a couple slow tears rolled down her face even as I watched her. She shivered and a strand of her dark, messy hair fell across her furrowed brow. Her lips were dry, and she was thinner than when I last saw her… too thin. A broken whimper escaped her parched lips and she shivered again. That was all I could take.

I jumped back down from the window and I actually fell. I tripped across the ground, my legs giving out under the weight of the emotions coming from Bella; they were crippling me, drowning me. It took a frightening amount of effort to push myself up off the ground and run away. Far away. When I got back to the house, I collapsed onto the couch. Vampires technically didn't get tired, but I had never felt so exhausted.

As soon as I recovered and had complete control over my own emotions again, I was furious. What the hell did Edward do to Bella?! Did he know she was like this?! And that was just in her sleep! What I heard Charlie say, though… He said she was apathetic now. In her sleep, she was anything but emotionless. Was she different while awake? I actually flinched at the thought of going near her again, to check on her during the day, but I would have to. I needed to understand.

It was December twenty-ninth. Bella was on winter break from school, so I went back to her house at around three o'clock in the afternoon, expecting her to be there. She was there… at least, she was there in body. Charlie was at work, so I was able to safely slip inside the house. When Bella was distracted at one point, seemingly starting to cook dinner for her father, I snuck inside through a widow in the living room. If I couldn't see Bella standing in the next room… If I couldn't smell her human blood and hear her heartbeat, I might have thought she wasn't there at all. There was no emotion coming from her. In emotional agony in sleep, and hollow when awake. She was empty and lifeless, none of her previous light in her at all. It was beyond disturbing. Somehow, she even managed to look worse than when I saw her the previous night.

Bella looked unstable and fragile in a way that had nothing to do with her somewhat clumsy nature. She was so thin and pale… The shadows under her eyes gave her an almost ghostly appearance, and her long, heavy hair looked too heavy as it framed her blushless cheeks. She looked so tired… so empty. The only time she showed any flicker of emotion or feeling was when she would randomly wince in pain. Then she would mutter something unintelligible to even my ears and resume her lifeless piddling about. It was extremely disconcerting.

At one point, while Bella continued working in the kitchen, I decided to look around the house a little. Edward and Alice had both been inside before. Carlisle stopped by once, while Bella was recovering from James' attack. I, however, had never come anywhere near the house before. I found myself making a quick course to Bella's bedroom… and wishing I hadn't.

I barely noticed the fact that Bella's scent was so strong inside the room. The room was actually relatively tidy, but it felt as hollow as the girl downstairs. There was a blanket thrown over what appeared to be a rocking chair in the corner of the room. That didn't make sense to me. A CD player sat on a nightstand near Bella's bed, but I saw that it was unplugged, and I didn't see any CDs anywhere in the room. The stereo that Emmett, Rosalie, and I had given to Bella for her birthday was in a garbage bin near her desk, as was a well-read copy of Romeo and Juliet. That brought my eye to the small bookcase in the room. Bella had good taste in literature. There was a lot of Shakespeare, several other classics, a good assortment. Upon closer inspection, though, I noticed her scent wasn't very strong on those books. She hadn't touched them in quite some time… I couldn't understand. Not until later that evening, anyway.

I went back to my own house when Charlie got home, and I decided it was time to call Alice. I described it all to her, every detail. When I was done, she sounded as upset as I felt, if not worse, as she explained the state of Bella's bedroom to me.

"It's everything that reminds her of Edward," Alice's voice was a breath above a whisper. "Everything she did with him. She probably sleeps above the covers because she got used to the temperature of his body next to hers. She listened to all sorts of music with him, and he wrote that lullaby for her, so she stopped listening to music… and tore the stereo out of her truck, apparently. She read all those books a lot before, and he would read to her, or talk to her about the books, so she stopped reading them… Romeo and Juliet was one of her favorites, and she and Edward compared themselves to the characters, sometimes… The star-crossed lovers who would rather die than be apart, with such different families and lives…" That last comment struck a nerve.

"I haven't read Romeo and Juliet in a while, but I don't remember Romeo mercilessly ripping Juliet's heart out," I growled softly. "And I'm positive there is no point in that story in which Romeo tells Juliet he doesn't love her. Perhaps that's why the book ended up in the trash," I added bitterly. "Bella's not a fan of the rewrite."

I was mildly surprised when Alice didn't say anything to counter my cold remark. She made no attempt to defend Edward. She didn't say anything for several seconds. Then, she almost whimpered, "What have we done?"

"I don't know," I said softly, "but I feel like I need to try to fix it."

"Should I come down there, too?" Alice asked me. I considered that for a minute.

"No," I eventually answered. "Stay up in Denali, and… don't tell any of the others about this just yet. Give me a little time down here, alone. I'm not exactly sure what I'm going to do, but…"

"You'll be fine, Jasper," Alice reassured me softly. "You'll figure something out."

"Vision?" I asked her.

"No," she laughed half-heartedly. "I just believe in you, that's all. Just keep in touch, okay?"

"Of course, Alice," I answered her.

"Are you going back to her house tonight?" Alice asked me.

"I think so," I said. "I'm going to run out for another quick hunt first, just as a precaution. Then, I probably will go back over there."

"Just be careful, Jasper," Alice warned. "After last night…"

"I know," I said. "If I can make myself get close enough, I think I'm going to try affecting her tonight, calming her. She needs a night of actual rest... She needs peace."

"Edward stayed with her every night, you know," Alice said suddenly. "In that rocking chair for the first few months, before she knew he was there. That's probably why it's covered up now. After that day he went to his meadow with her, he started staying in bed with her at night. He would hold her while she slept."

"Alice…" It took me a moment to process what she was saying. "Are you suggesting that I do that?" I asked her incredulously.

"Yes and no," Alice answered slowly and thoughtfully. "Your influence on others is stronger with physical contact, but I'm not sure how Bella would respond to the cold, hard feeling. Like I said, she used to like it, but… like I said, yes and no. I can't see anything, because you haven't decided what you're going to do yet."

"Alice," I said slowly, "I don't think I… could."

"Jasper, you just told me you were a few feet away from Bella today, and that you went inside her room already," Alice said with an exasperated sigh. "You really need to give yourself more credit. If you do get close to her tonight, you're not going to hurt her. I don't need my visions to tell me that. I know it to be true. You'll be fine, Jasper. Just… take care of Bella, okay?" My still heart ached at the plea in Alice's voice.

"I will," I promised her. "I need to go hunt now. It's getting late. I should get back to Bella, soon."

"Bye, Jasper," Alice said. "Call me tomorrow."

"I will," I responded, and we both hung up.

At nine o'clock that night, I was outside Bella's window once again, steeling myself to move even closer. Bella's emotions were devastating as she slept, just as they had been last night, and it took immense effort on my part to not succumb to the torrent. After a minute or so of standing outside, below her window, I leapt up to the window and slid it open, climbing quietly inside. I briefly debated over whether or not to close the window behind me. The fresh air would help dilute some of Bella's scent, but it might make her too cold. I decided to shut the window. It was December, after all. The window made very little noise but, for a moment, I thought the sound had woken Bella.

"Edward," she whimpered the name. "Don't leave me… Please… Please, come… back…" She begged. She was sleep-talking. I remembered hearing her sleep-talk a little when Alice and I stayed with her in Phoenix. The sound hadn't been so painful to hear in that hotel.

"Edward," Bella whimpered again, and her arms tightened around something she was holding against her chest. Looking more closely, I recognized it as a photo album. She was gripping it so tightly that the hard edges of the book cover were making red indentations in her arms. I walked over to her and carefully pried it out of her grip, careful to not touch her skin in case the coldness of my skin should startle her awake. I opened the album and flipped quickly through the pages. I stopped when I got to an empty page bearing the caption, Edward Cullen, Charlie's kitchen, Sept. 13th. There had obviously once been a picture of Edward above that caption. A picture Bella would not have discarded herself. It had been taken away from her. I suppressed a growl. How could Edward be so cruel?

Bella whimpered again. Wordlessly this time, but I felt even more pain pour out of her than before. She tossed fitfully in her sleep and she was radiating distress. I could scarcely imagine what horrible dreams plagued her every night. Though I had yet to hear it, Charlie said she screamed in her sleep every night, and she was already crying as I watched her. Slow tears rolled down her pale cheeks, just as they had last night. The urge to reach out and wipe them away was almost irresistible. I started sending waves of calm to her… and she reacted violently.

Bella screamed and suddenly sat bolt upright in her bed. I dove under her bed not a second too soon. Bella whimpered in pain, and I tried not to echo the sound. Her emotions were unbearable! I felt like there was a gaping, burning hole in my chest with raw, ragged edges. I would take the burn of vampire venom over this pain. It was excruciating! Loss, loneliness, worthlessness, emptiness… I was unloved, I was unwanted, I was unworthy of love, I… had to stop this! NOW! Without thinking of Bella's reaction, I threw the full force of my power at her, drowning her in lethargy, just to make the pain stop. I heard her fall over onto the bed with a dull thud.

I was gasping for unnecessary breath as I crawled out from under the bed. Despite the amount of lethargy I was pushing into her, some of Bella's painful emotions still seeped out of her, filling the room, but it was bearable. Without thinking about what I was doing, I climbed up on top of the bed. I laid down beside Bella, and I shifted her body so I could pull her blankets up to her shoulders before pulling her body closer to mine. I tried to avoid skin-on-skin contact with her, but I wrapped my arms around her and I poured peace and contentment into her. The wrinkle in her forehead smoothed out and the expression of distress on her face slowly faded. Her own arms, wrapped around her torso, loosened their hold ever so slightly. I understood why she held herself like that. She was trying to hold herself together, in spite of that excruciatingly painful hole in her chest. That indescribable pain… and Edward had caused it. We had caused it.

I did not move from Bella's side for the rest of the night. I did not rein in my power for a second. Only when I heard Charlie stir in the morning did I let go of Bella. I sent one last tidal wave of peace into her as I climbed quickly out of her bed and out the window. I ran back to my house at my top speed. I pulled out my phone as soon as I was in the door, to call Alice. Not only did I have more to tell her about Bella, but I needed the contact for my benefit too. I could still feel the echo of that hole in my chest, and I desperately needed relief. I needed someone who loved me to assure me that someone, somewhere, still cared about me…


	3. Right Here

♂︎(Jasper's POV)

Okay, apparently I overdid it a little. As if Charlie Swan wasn't worried enough about his daughter, I went back to check on Bella at four o'clock in the afternoon and found out that she had yet to wake up. Perfect. First, my entire family leaves her and breaks her heart, then I come back and put her in a coma. That really was overstating things a little, but still… I spent so little time around humans; it was easy to forget what lightweights they were when it came to my power. I definitely needed to do a little damage control.

I jumped through Bella's window again, and I threw a quick jolt of alertness and curiosity into her before hiding in her closet. Bella stirred and woke up. I struggled to not react defensively to the pain again, letting her compose herself at her own pace. After a few minutes, she'd settled into her apathetic mode. She looked at the clock on her nightstand and gasped, realizing how late it was. She quickly climbed out of bed and I prepared to follow her. I already had a plan of action set: I would just let Charlie see Bella, so he wouldn't worry, and then I would hit her with lethargy and make her come back to bed. I would help her sleep another peaceful night… At a lower magnitude, this time.

As I expected it would, relief gushed out of Charlie when he saw Bella. Bella moved to get something to eat, so I waited for her to finish her bowl of cereal before I started sedating her. I already had her eyelids drooping when Charlie decided to attempt a conversation with her.

"Angela Weber called, this morning," he told her. I remembered that girl. I never met her, but I remembered her being one of Bella's human friends.

"She did?" In spite of my power and her own apathy, Bella sounded stunned. Charlie laughed once.

"Yeah," he said. "Apparently, she hasn't given up on you yet, kiddo."

"What did she want?" Bella asked flatly.

"She's going to see a movie in Port Angeles, tomorrow, for New Year's Eve," Charlie said. "She said she's already got one other friend coming along, but she wants you to come too." The tone of Charlie's voice was painfully pleading. This man was practically begging his daughter to go out with her friends. His desperation made me remember the hole in Bella again, and I winced in pain that was not my own.

"Maybe I'll give her a call, in the morning," Bella mumbled wearily. "I'm still really tired. I'll have to see how I'm feeling tomorrow…"

"Bella, you've been asleep all day," Charlie responded incredulously. "How can you still be tired?" Bella shrugged.

"Midon't know," Bella mumbled, garbling her words together. "Maybe I'm getting sick…"

"Then I guess you should rest," Charlie conceded dejectedly. "'Night, Bells."

"'Night, Dad," Bella murmured as she walked heavily back up the stairs. I retreated back into her closet as she entered her room. Bella climbed onto her bed without pulling the covers back, stretching out on top of them and quickly falling asleep under my unrelenting influence.

I moved toward Bella slowly and sat on the edge of her bed, facing her. She did not stir. I breathed in deeply and I ignored the burn in my throat. Freesia. I could smell it. I had not been able to make distinctions between the scents of humans until very recently. I had been practicing in Denali, with Eleazar's help. Even when Bella's blood was spilled in front of me, she had smelled irresistibly sweet to me, but I hadn't been able to smell what the rest of my family did: Freesia… and… was that lavender? I hadn't perfected the skill yet, so I couldn't be sure. I drew another deep breath. My thirst flared, but I fought it down once again. Bella smelled wonderful.

"Edward," Bella whimpered. Oh, no. Not again. I was about to increase the amount of lethargy I was pouring into her, but then…

"Jasper," Bella murmured. I froze and stared down at her in shock.

"It's… 'S not your… Not your fault…" Bella whispered. She whimpered softly and her hands balled into fists. "It's okay… Blood… Not your… Fault… Jasper…" Bella's brow furrowed and I felt the same urge to touch her that I had felt last night. I didn't touch her, but before I could stop myself, I responded to her.

"Yes, Bella?" I prodded softly. Bella stirred, but she did not wake.

"I'm sorry," Bella said. That threw me. She spoke very clearly, but… That couldn't be right.

"For what, Bella?" I whispered to her.

"Papercut," Bella mumbled. Oh. She was apologizing to me for that? That wasn't good.

"That wasn't your fault," I whispered. "It was mine."

"No," Bella objected again, very clearly. "Not… Jasper… Don't go…" Bella's voice cracked slightly on that last word, and a tear escaped her eye and rolled down her face. It was a heart-wrenching sight.

"I won't," I said to her, and I was relieved to see the faintest flicker of a smile cross her face. The expression was fleeting, though. Her brow furrowed in pain again, seconds later.

"Edward," she whimpered again. I sighed. I increased the amount of lethargy and serenity I was sending into her. I reached out and barely touched her shoulder with my fingertips.

"Rest now, Bella," I whispered. "Rest now, and feel better tomorrow. I'm right here…"


	4. Déjà Vu

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: Brief assault/non-con.

♀︎(Bella's POV)

I woke up feeling better than I had in a long time. The problem was, feeling better made me think of Edward, of how he would stay with me at night comforting me, holding me… And the pain returned. Surprisingly, it wasn't quite as strong as usual. The edges of the hole in my chest festered and burned, but it was a little easier than usual to fight the feeling down. I forced all my feelings inward, and I closed myself off. This defense mechanism had almost become automatic. Not only did this fog I put myself in make everything a little less painful for me, but Charlie didn't have to see the pain… It was better that way.

I got out of bed slowly and looked around my room. For some reason, I had the strangest feeling that I was being watched… Window closed, nothing out of place… Nothing. There was no one around, but the feeling remained, just as it had yesterday. In that brief amount of time I'd been awake yesterday, I could've sworn Charlie and I weren't the only ones in the house… but there was nothing. Maybe the problem was that I'd been cooped up in here too long. After all, I had yet to leave the house since school got out for winter break. Angela had still called.

I turned to check the clock: It was noon. Yes, I definitely needed to get out of the house. Why was I suddenly sleeping so much? It was surely worrying Charlie. He'd feel better if I went out with Angela, tonight. I just hoped she would still want me to come on such short notice. Making up for as much time as I could, I ran downstairs at a dangerously fast pace for me. It really was a miracle I didn't fall. I just shot Charlie a quick, forced smile as I grabbed the phone and dialed Angela's number.

"Hello?" I was beyond relieved when Angela's voice answered. Dealing with her parents or her brother would have been much too awkward. As it was, this was going to be awkward enough.

"Angela, it's Bella," I responded tentatively.

"Bella?" Angela sounded shocked. Thankfully, she recovered quickly. "Bella! Did you get my message? Can you come tonight?" She sounded so excited. I felt a little guilty. I was surely not going to be very good company. I just wasn't myself anymore… I could only hope I wouldn't disappoint Angela too much.

"Yeah, sorry I'm calling back so late," I said, "but if the invitation is still there… I'd like to come."

"Oh that's great, Bella!" Angela said, still with that enthusiasm that made me uncomfortable. "Of course the invitation is still there. We haven't had a fun night together in months. I really want to see you." She was kind enough to not mention the reason for my detachment, though I was sure she was thinking about it. Angela, at least, hadn't changed much. She was such a great friend.

"Who else is coming?" I asked her. "My dad said someone else was already coming along. Is it Jess?" I really hoped not.

"No, it's not," Angela said. "She, Mike, Tyler, and Lauren made other New Year's plans. Um… I wasn't sure if I should mention it to your dad or not… I don't know if you noticed, but I've been dating Ben Cheney for a while now…" Some friend I was. The last date I remember Angela going on was with Eric, to the prom.

"Oh, so they're coming?" I asked Angela, shooting a surreptitious glance over my shoulder at Charlie. I wasn't sure how he'd take that detail either.

"Oh." Angela responded, realization in her voice. "You're dad is there?"

"Mm-hm."

"Well, yeah, this night out was kind of supposed to be a… Well, a date," Angela said, her excited voice finally taking on a somewhat pleading tone. "The thing is, Ben really wants to see this big action movie that's playing now. I'm sure it's going to be one of those ridiculous, completely overdone things with lots of explosions and a terrible plot…" For the first time in months, I couldn't help but laugh a little. It was nothing impressive, really; a very soft laugh. Still, I could've sworn I heard Charlie choke at the sound, somewhere behind me.

"Calling for backup, Angela?" I asked. I heard Angela laugh too.

"Yes," she almost whined. "I really like Ben. He and I are great for each other, but he has such horrible taste in movies! You'll still come, given that information, won't you? Please, Bella, help me out here?"

"Sure," I said. "Yeah, I'll come. What time?"

"The movie starts at six, so Ben and I will pick you up in three hours. Is that okay with you?"

"That's fine," I said. "Thanks, Angela, I'll see you soon."

"See you, Bella," Angela replied, and we both hung up. I gave Charlie a second to recover before I turned around to face him. He had mostly collected himself by the time our eyes met, but not completely. So many emotions were clearly fighting for dominance on his face, I almost wished Jas… Someone who knew his emotions better was around to explain them to me. What was I doing? I had to stop thinking about the… Them. I was finally feeling slightly better. If I let my mind keep wandering to them, that wasn't going to last long.

"You're going out tonight, then?" Charlie asked in a forced casual tone.

"Yeah, I guess so," I said. "Angela will be here in a few hours to pick me up. We're going to see a movie in Port Angeles." If Charlie didn't ask about the third person involved, I wasn't going to bring up the subject. Charlie seemed deep in thought for a moment.

"I guess Port Angeles is far enough…" He murmured. I waited for him to explain. "That bear hasn't been seen that far out. It's been a little closer to town." Bear? Oh. Now that he mentioned it, I vaguely remembered people at school talking about that.

"I heard some talk about that," I told Charlie. "People are saying that bear is as big as a horse. Is that true?" Charlie shrugged.

"Hard to know. I haven't seen it," he said. "I doubt it's that big, though. People are also saying it's a black bear, and they just don't get that big. Even grizzlies don't… I'm sure whoever started that rumor was just exaggerating. The bear's size doesn't really matter, though. We just need to find a way to stop it, and keep it out of town. A few hikers have been killed… You know, Bells, there have been more deaths around here since you got here than there have been in… Well, I'd guess about ten years, now…"

I just nodded, not saying anything. What was I supposed to say? Well, Dad, I don't know about this bear, but before that it was a coven of three vampires killing those people. They tired to kill me, too. Remember what happened in Phoenix? Right. As if he didn't already think I was going crazy.

"Well, I need to get ready, Dad," I said. Angela's going to be here in three hours." I started toward the stairs, but Chief Swan entered the chat.

"Who else is coming?" He asked. "Angela said on the phone that another of your friends is going." I sighed heavily. What was the point in lying? Charlie had switched to interrogation mode. He wasn't going to give up easily.

"Ben Cheney," I answered. Without looking, I knew by the beat of silence that my answer surprised Charlie.

"Cheney?" He asked. "Yeah, I know that kid. I didn't know you did…"

"He's Angela's boyfriend," I said over my shoulder, continuing my course upstairs.

"Oh." Charlie sounded a little relieved. Of course. As long as the boy I would be with tonight was already taken… "Well, he's a good kid, I guess. Maybe you'll have some fun tonight, huh?"

"Not likely," I murmured too quietly for Charlie to hear.

Angela and Ben waited for me in Ben's car when they pulled up, probably trying to dodge interrogation from Charlie. I told them he was okay with Ben being with us as soon as I slid into the back seat. Angela and Ben both visibly relaxed. Angela only asked me a few harmless questions as Ben drove to Port Angeles: Did I hear it was supposed to be sunny tomorrow? Did I get anything nice for Christmas? Things like that. She was obviously being careful not to pressure me into talking about things I didn't want to discuss. It made me a little sick to my stomach. If Angela was walking on eggshells around me, I didn't want to think about what everyone else in town probably thought of me. And here I thought I was doing a pretty good job of covering up the pain I was in. I wasn't fooling anybody.

We arrived in Port Angeles at five-forty-five. Fifteen minutes before the movie was set to start. We went inside the fairly vacant theatre and Ben bought popcorn for all three of us. By the time we found seats in the screening room, the previews were starting. Honestly, I was grateful that the movie was one of those superficial action movies. Minimal romance, no supernatural creatures, nothing to cause and emotional breakdown on my part. I was able to keep my defenses up through this. The only thing that started to bother me, after a while, was the talking going on somewhere behind me, Angela, and Ben. I really wouldn't have minded the talking so much, but the content was disgusting.

"Hey babe, we could go make something else explode, if you want," some guy was saying to the girl with him.

"Baby, just watch the movie," she laughed back.

"Can't do that with you sitting here," the man replied. The girl suddenly burst into a fit of giggles and I fought not to visualize what was probably happening behind me. Ben was the one who cracked first.

"Hey, get a room back there," he snapped, turning to face the man behind us. Angela grabbed one of Ben's hands.

"What's the matter, kid," a different man's voice laughed. Something about his voice sounded strangely familiar. "The two little hotties you're with not giving you any?" Ben jumped to his feet, but I helped Angela pull him back down.

"Just let it go," Angela whispered to him, amid the laughter of the men behind us. "It's not worth it."

"Just try to ignore them," I said. "It's only going to get worse if you egg them on." Ben was clenching his jaw tightly, but he nodded.

"If either of you girls get too lonely, you can join us back here," the familiar voice called. The other man and the girl he was with laughed loudly.

"Let it go," Angela and I both whispered to Ben at the same time.

"Yeah, come on, the prude can share," the man with a date called. "Poor kid doesn't know what to do with two women. We do." I was almost gagging. We continued to ignore the comments though, and the talk eventually died down.

It was right in the middle of the big, cliché chase scene that the movie itself started making me uncomfortable. The romance between the two main characters intensified. One line after another was brimming with passionate declarations of love. When the lead male character told the dark-haired beauty next to him, "You are my life, now," I jumped to my feet. I mumbled something about going to the restroom to Angela and Ben as I sidled out of the isle.

It was on my way out of the room that I got my first good look at the men and woman sitting behind us: The woman was blonde, busty, and scantily clad. The man next to her and the man whose voice sounded so familiar… They were much too familiar. I ran out of the room, praying they didn't recognize me as I did them. There were only two, not four, but I definitely knew who they were.

No one followed behind me as I made my way to the women's bathroom. I breathed a sigh of relief once I was inside. I walked over to the sinks and looked in the mirrors. That was when I realized I was crying. Probably from the romantic scene in the movie. I hadn't seen that coming. The hole in my chest was throbbing, and I became aware that my defensive wall was down. I felt very alert and clear, my protective mental fog absent from my mind. I tried to bring it back. I tried to shut down again, but I couldn't. Something was stopping me. Was it the shock of seeing those men again?

"Anyone in there?" A man's voice said, and there was a knock on the restroom door. "Janitor. Heard someone got sick in there. Anyone in there?" I listened for the sound of any other women in the room. No response.

"Yeah," I had to answer. "Just a minute."

"Only you in there, sugar?" Another man's voice called. My stomach dropped to my feet. The door started opening and I ran into the nearest stall, locking the door behind me and stepping up onto the toilet, so my feet couldn't be seen under the door. I crouched down so my head was below the top of the stall door and I tried to keep my balance. I heard the door opening and shutting, footsteps...

"It's been about eight or nine months, hasn't it, sugar?" The more familiar of the two voices said. "Been a long time, but I never forget a pretty face." Was it possible to leer with your voice? Apparently so.

"What you doin' here with that prude boy, baby?" The man who had pretended to be the janitor said. "He seems to like that other girl more, anyway. Or is that the problem? Do you prefer girls, baby? Are you here with your girlfriend?"

"Jerry and Pete are gonna be sorry they missed you, sugar," came the other man's voice. My heart was pounding hard against my rib cage. A vampire could probably hear it from a mile away. I prayed it wasn't so audible to the human ears moving ever closer to me.

"Come on, babe, my girl's waitin' for me back there," called the other voice. "How am I supposed to tell her I prefer little brunettes? Don't make me get caught."

"Should've thought about that before you brought Maureen along, Cid," the man who liked to call me 'sugar' replied.

"How was I supposed to know we'd run into our old friend here," Cid retorted. "Damn, Kyle, you're the one who set me up with her!" The other man, Kyle, laughed.

"She's fucking hot, man," Kyle laughed. "And easy. Doesn't play hard to get like our honey in here." Great, he was moving on to 'honey'. Worse, he was moving closer. I could see his boots under the stall door. I tried to draw in a deep breath, preparing to scream for help, but the simple shift in my weight that caused made me lose my balance and fall from my precarious perch on the toilet.

"There she is!" The man named Cid said. He and the heavier guy, Kyle, both reached under the stall door and dragged me out.

"You okay, sugar?" Kyle asked, pulling me to my feet. "Didn't hurt yourself, did you?" He looked just as I remembered him: Dark hair, large build, and leering brown eyes. I had one arm free, so I aimed a punch at him. The other man, Cid, caught my wrist before I made contact.

"Oh, she's still feisty," Cid laughed. I recognized him as one of the two that had herded me around to Kyle that night. He had blonde hair and had a much leaner build than Kyle. He was really tall, though. He was a few inches taller than Kyle, and he towered over me. "Hear any cars coming?" He asked Kyle with a smirk. "Don't think Maureen will put out if I've been hit by a truck."

"Nah, that's not gonna happen again," Kyle said, his eyes raking lasciviously over me. He brought one hand up and grabbed a fistful of my hair before adding, "Nowhere to go this time, sugar." I opened my mouth to scream, but he crashed his lips against mine. I thrashed in his grip, trying desperately to push him off me, but he just pushed me forcibly back against the counters behind me. I felt a hand on my thigh. I couldn't tell who it belonged to. I screamed as well as I could with Kyle still kissing me, and I kicked out as hard as I could. I was clawing at Kyle's face, kicking anything I could reach, and even trying to bite the harsh lips assaulting mine, but to no avail. I thought nothing would stop the two men until a low, bass growling filled the room.

Kyle was abruptly torn away from me and thrown into one of the stalls, the door breaking right of its hinges at the impact. The blonde man, Cid, quickly met the same fate. It all happened so fast; it gave me a brief sensation of vertigo. When I came out of it, I realized with a shock who my savior was: It was Jasper. I only saw his back, but I knew it was him. He was advancing on Kyle again, though both Kyle and Cid were unconscious. That was when it occurred to me that they were both bleeding from the head… a lot.

"Jasper!" I gasped out, my voice hoarse from my muffled screaming. "Jasper, stop! Don't do it! They're probably already dead, Jasper… Those head wounds… Jasper, please! Don't drink from them! Jasper, stop!" Where was Alice? Edward? Carlisle? I knew I would probably pay for thinking of all of them later, but the floodgate was open. Jasper couldn't control himself with that much blood flowing. The smell of all of it was even making me dizzy. He couldn't stop, and I couldn't stop him. Just then, though… he did.

Jasper stopped and turned around. His eyes were pitch black as he looked at me, but he looked… controlled. He kept his eyes on mine as he took one slow step toward me, taking another when I didn't react fearfully. He didn't say anything, probably holding his breath. He did send a wave of calm into me as he closed the distance between us. I didn't move, and he picked me up, swinging me into his arms and carrying me out of the women's restroom at human pace. I watched his face as he looked up and down the hall once, moving down the hall at vampire speed and carrying me into the men's restroom, instead. Still holding me in one arm, he grabbed one of the heavy trash cans from the corner of the room and placed it in front of the door as a barricade. It was only when he walked farther into the room with me that I caught sight of myself in the mirrors.

"Oh, Jasper, it's okay," I gasped. "You don't have to do this. I'm bleeding. Let me clean myself up. You can put me down, Jasper. I'm fine. Please…" I was sounding more hysterical with every word I spoke. I tried to rein in my fear, knowing that only made it more difficult for vampires like Jasper. Jasper set me down gently, but he didn't let go of me completely. I realized why, once my feet touched the ground. I winced in pain. I hadn't realized those kicks I threw made contact. I couldn't remember feeling much pain at all in the moment, but I sure did now it was over. Every inch of me was hurting. I'd had worse, though. Much worse.

With Jasper's help, I made my way over to one of the sinks. I turned on the water and Jasper let go of me, going to grab some paper towels. My lip was bleeding, so I tended to that first. I washed the blood away and applied pressure with one of the damp paper towels until the bleeding stopped. The top button of my blouse was gone, so I smoothed the collar down, to cover the evidence. My hair was a complete mess. I got my hands wet and tried to work my fingers through the tangles, but only a couple of them came loose. When I tugged at them harder, I flinched. My head hurt from how hard Ky… that man… had pulled my hair.

"May I help?" Jasper asked me. I jumped slightly at the sound of his voice. I looked at him in the mirror. "I won't hurt you, Bella," he said, responding to my reaction to his voice or promising not to make my head hurt worse, I couldn't tell. I nodded. He moved a little closer to me and I my eyes fell shut when his cold fingers touched the sore spots on my head, easing the pain. I relaxed at Jasper's touch, and I wasn't sure it was just because of his power either. I missed the touch of these vampires I cared so dearly for. Cold and hard, but still such a comfort to me.

Jasper was very gentle as he pulled the knots out of my hair, always holding the strands he worked with near the roots, so I barely felt the tugging at all. After a minute or so, he was done. I opened my eyes and ran my own fingers through my hair again, finding not one snag.

"You should get back to Angela and Ben," Jasper said suddenly. "They'll be worried about you. That movie should be ending any minute now." My heart dropped right out of the hole in my chest and silently fell to the floor, only to jump back in and start hammering against my ribs as panic overwhelmed me.

"No!" I said, whirling around to face Jasper. "You can't leave me now! No! Stay, or we can both go, just... Please! Don't leave!" Jasper touched my shoulder and a heavy wave of calm washed through me, rendering me speechless for a moment.

"I'm not leaving, Bella," he said, his black eyes looking straight into mine. Crap, he was dazzling me. Please, no… The hole in my chest seared and Jasper flinched. "Bella!" He said, demanding my attention. "I'm not leaving. Not that way. I really need to hunt, though, and you need to get a ride home with Ben and Angela. Listen to me, Bella. It won't be long before someone finds those two men we left in there. They're dead, Bella. If your friends hear about that and don't see that you're okay, they'll suspect the worst. Go home. I'll hunt, and then I will come meet you there. I will explain everything, Bella, I promise you. Right now, you and I need to cover our tracks." I nodded. That did make sense, as long as he promised he would come back later.

Jasper surprised me then by taking my hand and leading me out of the men's room, tossing the trash can he'd left in front of the door aside. I was even more surprised when he pulled me toward the concession stand. He bought a box of Junior Mints and handed them to me. "Tell Ben and Angela you were only in the restroom for a minute before you went to get more food. If they hear anything before the three of you leave, I don't want them to suspect you were in there with those men." Jasper nearly growled those last two words. I nodded compliantly. Jasper gave my hand one light, reassuring squeeze, sending one more wave of ease and calm into me, then he let go and before I could blink, he was gone.

I made my way back into the screening room and my heart skipped a beat when I saw the woman, Maureen, still sitting there. I kept my eyes away from her as I made my way back to Angela and Ben. "Bella, where were you?" Angela whispered as I sat down. "Are you okay?"

"Fine," I whispered back. "I wasn't feeling well for a minute, that's all. I think I'm just hungry. I decided to get something else to eat, but no one was working the concession stand, so I had to wait for a few minutes. Sorry." Mercifully, Angela and Ben both seemed to believe me. Just to be safe, I made a show of quickly eating the candy Jasper bought for me. The movie ended just as I finished off the box. It ended with a romantic scene, of course, but I barely noticed.

As Ben, Angela, and I left the screening room, I saw Maureen turn and head for the women's restroom. There were a couple other women in the hall too, all heading the same direction. In an act of sheer desperation, I challenged Ben and Angela to a race back to the car. I fell twice, scraping my palms on the ground once, but we at least made it to the car before the commotion started inside. Even as I climbed into the car though, I could hear screams inside the theater.

"What was that?" Ben asked, exchanging a glance with Angela.

"Wasn't there a horror movie playing, too?" I asked. "Maybe someone got a little more than they bargained for." Ben and Angela laughed.

"Good point," Ben said as he started the car and drove off. Wow. I was getting away with more lies than usual. Best to keep my mouth shut and not push my luck. That was easy enough. Ben did most of the talking, going on and on about the movie. I only spoke up once more on the ride home: When Fall Out Boy's song 'Sugar, We're Goin' Down' came on the radio, I insisted on a station change.

I dodged any talk with Charlie after Ben and Angela dropped me off, telling him I was sick from eating too much junk food at the theater. I went up to my room and changed into my sweats, so I could make another pass downstairs to convince Charlie that I was going to bed.

"You're not going to stay up until midnight?" Charlie asked me as I made a show of getting a glass of water. There probably was a good chance that I would be up that late, but I wasn't going to tell Charlie that.

"No," I said. "I'm pretty sick to my stomach after the movie…"

"Well, I'll probably turn in early too," Charlie said. "Billy called and invited us over for breakfast, tomorrow. The Clearwaters are gonna be there, too. So are Sam and Emily Uley and a couple other La Push kids. It's kind of a tradition they have there. The first meal of the New Year. They wanted us to join them this year. Jacob really wants to see you. Sam, too. Don't know if you remember him… He's the one who found you in the woods that night…" I choked on my last gulp of water.

"Yeah," I coughed. "Sounds fun, Dad. Good night."

"'Night, Bells," Charlie replied as I walked upstairs.

When I got back to my room, I hesitated before climbing into bed, looking around the room. Thinking of Jasper coming, I walked over to the trash can and moved it inside my closet, hiding the evidence that I'd thrown away the stereo he, Rosalie, and Emmett had given me for my disastrous birthday. I also pulled the blanket I'd thrown over the rocking chair off and tossed it on top of my bed. Finally, I looked at the window. It was closed, as it had been since Edward left. When he and the other Cullens were around, I always kept it open, inviting any of them inside. I walked over to the window and pushed it open, letting the cold air from outside wash into the room. Nothing moved outside, but Jasper had promised… Not that Edward had kept his promise… The hole in my chest ached and burned viciously. I couldn't let myself think of that.

I walked over to my bookshelf and grabbed Shakespeare's Othello, before settling down on my bed to read. I opened the book to the final act, where Desdemona waits for Othello in their bed, and my eyes went to the song she sings:

The poor soul sat by a sycamore tree,

Sing all a green willow.

Her hand on her bosom, her head on her knee,

Sing willow, willow, willow.

The fresh streams ran by her and murmured her moans,

Sing willow, willow, willow.

Her salt tears fell from her and softened the stones,

Sing willow, willow, willow.

Sing all a green willow must be my garland.

Let nobody blame him, his scorn I approve

I called my love false love, but what said he then?

Sing willow, willow, willow.

If I court more women, you'll couch with more men.

Edward had left me. I was nothing to him. Not that I ever completely believed I was… I could never be good enough for a creature like that. He could do so much better. Gorgeous, strong vampires like Rosalie were meant for him, not me… Only filthy men like the ones in Port Angeles would ever want me… I closed my eyes as tears fell from them, as I waited for Jasper to come. Not that I was worth the effort…


	5. Papercut

♂︎(Jasper's POV)

I took my time while I hunted. I was still furious with those repulsive men. Leave it to Bella to run into the same men Edward had saved her from. She was still a danger magnet… and we had left her without protection. What if I hadn't come back here? What if I hadn't followed her to Port Angeles? I was no longer thirsty, but I took down one more elk, just for the sake of attacking something. I felt no remorse for killing those men. I was only sorry Bella had to witness it. Bella... I needed to get back to her.

When I was within a few yards of Bella's house, I could hear her father snoring. As soon as I came close to Bella's window… Worthlessness, sadness, loneliness… Normal emotions for her, unfortunately… Hope, hopelessness, trust, betrayal, confusion… Those were new. They probably had to do with me. She wasn't sure what to make of seeing me again... Resignation… To what?

"Of course he's not coming," I heard Bella mutter to herself. "Why did I actually let myself believe…?" And there it was. The hole was back. No… the hole was worse. Damn, I was an idiot for not thinking of that! The way she reacted when I told her to go back to Angela and Ben… I told her I would be back, but… Regret, desolation, despair, betrayal, loss… Loss. I had done that. She already lost all of us once, and she believed she'd lost me again. It was a good thing I didn't really need to breathe, because I couldn't breathe. I couldn't move. Bella's broken heart thrashed at my own still heart, trying to break it too. Alice, Alice, Alice, Alice, Alice… I was not unloved. Alice still loved me… even though she said we're each going to find someone else… Alice doesn't… no, no, no…

Apathy. I was on my knees, gasping for breath. The pain was still there, but it was a little more bearable. Apathy… I knew what that meant: Bella was beyond coping. She was turning back into the empty shell… She'd come out of it for a little while earlier, but she'd already been hurt enough to withdraw again… What was I going to do? I didn't want to feel the excruciating hole again. I didn't want Bella to have to feel that again, but… she wasn't Bella like this.

I shot a strong wave of lethargy in the direction of Charlie's room. Bella was going to be making a lot of noise, and I didn't want him to wake up. I leapt up into Bella's open window and she gasped in surprise. Well, that was what it sounded like at least. I only felt minimal surprise from her. She was determined not to feel anything, but she stood no chance against me. I moved quickly to where she sat on the edge of her bed, and I lifted her into my arms. She screamed.

I cradled Bella against my chest and pushed every conflicting feeling and emotion I could into her, all at once: Fear and trust, love and hate, sadness and joy, giddiness and lethargy, calm and anxiety, excitement and wariness, anger and adoration… Bella screamed a couple more times and she struggled violently to break my hold on her, but her fight was lost to my strength, and her defensive apathy didn't last long either. I gradually reined the force of my power in and Bella's screams dissolved into soft whimpers, and she stopped thrashing in my arms. I kept a steady stream of calm and ease going into her, so neither of us would have to experience the full force of her pain. Otherwise, I let her experience her own emotions without my interference. Alarm, confusion, anger, sadness, confusion…

"I'm sorry, but I had to do that, Bella," I told her softly as I placed her back on her bed. She promptly turned onto her side and curled into a fetal position. "What you're doing, the way you keep shutting down… I've never felt anything like that, Bella. I've also never felt such terrible pain coming from one person. I wasn't sure what to do, but that apathetic stupor you keep falling into… That just can't be good for you, Bella. It can't be healthy. I just want to help you, Bella. Forgive me?" Bella was silent for a moment, but I didn't press her to speak, allowing her to collect her thoughts. I really did feel guilty for putting her through that emotional torture. I'd rendered vampires helpless with less magnitude. I would not pressure her to speak to me. I would understand if she didn't forgive me.

"Everything you just mentioned feeling from me…" Bella murmured after a moment. "How long have you been here?" Still very intuitive and observant.

"I came back to Forks five days ago," I admitted to Bella. "I've come here a few times, usually at night, to check on you. Alice warned me that you would be in bad shape, but… Bella I'm so sorry for what we did to you, for whatever Edward did to you. He never told any of us, you see, and we so rarely see him anymore… We had no idea we were leaving you like this." Bella sniffled and her arms wrapped tightly around her torso. She kept her back turned to me.

"You don't see Edward anymore?" She almost whimpered. "Not even Alice…?"

"Just as the rest of us learned ways to block our minds from him, he knows how to dodge Alice's visions," I explained. "You know her visions are dependant on decisions people make. Avoiding making conscious decisions and changing your mind often keeps her pretty well in the dark. It's difficult to do, but not impossible."

"But, why would he leave you?" Bella whispered. Hurt, worthlessness, betrayal… "He left me because he was 'tired of pretending to be human', because you're vampires and you aren't supposed to get involved with weak little humans…" Bella's voice gained a little more strength as she spoke, as did her emotions. I could tell a part of her wanted to be angry at Edward, at all of us for leaving her. The larger part of her, however, believed every word of what Edward told her and believed his harsh rejection was deserved. I struggled not to growl in outrage as she went on. "He said he didn't want me. He doesn't love me, and… I can't say I blame him. He's right. I'm just one fragile little human… Back when James was hunting me, you told me I was worth all the trouble, but I wasn't… I'm not. Edward just took longer to see what I knew to be true from the start. It's my own fault for letting myself hope…" I lost the struggle against my outrage. I growled and Bella jumped. She rolled onto her back and looked up at me in alarm.

"Sorry, Bella," I quickly apologized for startling her through my clenched teeth. I focused on not projecting my fury out to her as I tried to explain. "Bella, I swear, I could just about kill Edward for saying those things to you, for doing that to you. What on Earth would possess him…? What was he thinking?"

"Jasper," Bella said softly, making me aware of the fact that I was speaking more to myself than to her.

"Sorry," I apologized again, closing my eyes and taking a moment to calm myself down. I was losing control. When I trusted myself to keep my composure, I looked directly into Bella's wide eyes and spoke again. "I have no idea what Edward was thinking when he said those things to you, Bella. He's the mind-reader. I am the empath, and I do know what he was feeling. I haven't been near enough to him in a while, but last I checked, he does still love you…." That was when I remembered: Edward was acting different, last I saw him. It was one of the main reasons I returned. He was feeling different… Surely it was by some other cause? He did still love Bella, didn't he?

"I'm human, Jasper. I'm not stupid," Bella suddenly said bitingly. She was actually glaring at me. "You vampires are all good liars, but I've become used to what to look for! You aren't sure if he does still love me, I can tell!" Anger was definitely starting to win out, as was outrage. I checked myself to make sure I wasn't projecting my own feelings onto her. I wasn't. This was all her. "Why are you doing this to me?" She almost growled. I knew she had a bit of a temper, but I never knew she had this in her. "You can feel that I'm still not over all this! It's been months! Charlie thinks I'm going crazy! Angela and Ben are the only humans around here who have spoken to me at all in at least two months! Dr. Gerandy thinks I'm on the verge of a complete psychotic break, and I can't ever tell anyone the truth!"

Bella's anger broke as abruptly as it had flared, and she started to cry. Her body trembled and she curled in on herself again, holding herself together with her arms and rocking herself back and forth slightly. I slowly moved closer to her, internally flinching at the pain radiating from her. The hole was making itself known, again. If I was going to try to smooth things over with Bella, I had to check her emotions before they crippled me too. I sat down gently beside her and touched her shoulder lightly. Bella's grip on her torso loosened slightly and she stopped rocking. She relaxed slowly. I was trying to affect her as minimally as possible while still being effective. I'd already put her through emotional torture to snap her out of her apathy. I was determined to be as gentle with her as possible moving forward.

"Did you come here just to lie to me some more?" Bella whimpered feebly. "Why are you doing this?" She asked again. "You don't care about me. I'm not with Edward anymore, so you have no reason to… Why?" That last question contained a hundred questions, a hundred broken pleas. She was asking more of me than why I had returned to Forks. She was pleading with me to help her understand. My silent heart broke for her, and this time it did so on its own. It wasn't just an echo of her pain anymore. It was mine and hers.

"Bella, I did not come here to lie to you," I promised her, and I tentatively brought my hand from her shoulder to her face, wiping away some of the tears there. I was somewhat shocked that she allowed that. She didn't recoil from my touch, and I had never touched her in such a tender, casual way before. I felt her surprise at the gesture, but that was all. Her cheek felt by no means cool under my fingers, but not as warm as I'd imagined. The way she always used to blush… I half-expected her face to feel perpetually warmer than most humans. That was something else, too: She used to blush deep red almost every time Edward touched her similarly. I sampled her emotions: Emptiness, indifference, confusion… She just didn't care that I was touching her. It meant nothing to her.

"You're almost right, though," I continued. "Honestly, the last time I was near enough to Edward to get a sense of his emotions, he was feeling… different. That's a pat description, I know, but I really don't know how else to describe it. His emotions confused me. I wasn't trying to lie to you about it, Bella. I just realized the untruth in my own words as I was speaking them. I apologize for that, but you know the truth now. The truth is, I don't know what he's feeling about all this. I'm sure he doesn't know how terribly he hurt you, but… Bella, I only know that he did still love you, when we left. A few moths ago, all he wanted to do was protect you from the dangers of associating with us. He was very, very wrong in the way he did so. I doubt I'll ever be able to forgive him. I doubt Alice will either."

"Alice?" Bella prodded, her curiosity piqued in spite of herself.

"I've called her a couple time since I came here," I said. "She wanted me to keep her posted."

"Why?" Bella asked, again. "I still don't understand…"

"Well, that part is difficult to explain, Bella," I responded honestly. "You see, shortly after we left, Alice started having visions that she and I were going to grow apart and find new mates." Bella gasped at that revelation and I automatically sent a wave of ease into her before continuing. "She saw that we would both remain with our family, and that we would always love each other, but… It just isn't going to be enough, anymore. Something changed between us. Neither of us really understands what it is, but there it is."

"That's awful, Jasper," Bella murmured. "I'm sorry, but… How did that bring you here?" I had to consider for a second how to answer that.

"Again, I'm not entirely sure myself," I told her. "Between Alice's visions and Edward's strange behavior… I just felt like I needed to get away for a little while, andI thought of you often after we left. I worried about you. I see now that I had every reason to be concerned, but I didn't know that before I decided to come back to Forks. That was when Alice was able to see some of what I would find here. It wasn't much, but she could tell that I would find you in worse shape than any of us had expected. What an understatement that was… I'm so sorry, Bella. I doubt you'll ever know just how sorry I am."

"This isn't still about that papercut, is it?" Bella asked suddenly. I looked into her probing, somewhat accusatory eyes, surprised.

"No. Not really," I answered her. "I am very, very sorry about that too. I will never forgive myself for losing control like that, for trying to hurt you… You, of all people…"

"That wasn't your fault, Jasper," Bella interjected firmly. "I'm the one who was clumsy enough to hurt myself doing something as harmless as opening a birthday present. Carlisle was the only one of you who didn't have to leave the house after that whole mess. Edward, Alice, Esme, Emmett… They all had trouble controlling themselves too."

"They didn't actually attack you."

"They wanted to!" Bella snapped belligerently. "Sure, the parts of them that didn't want to hurt me held dominance, but at least part of them wanted my blood just as much as you did. Edward had already tasted my blood before then. He didn't want to admit it, but I could tell how difficult it was for him to restrain himself that day. He wasn't breathing! I can barely remember a time after that party when he wasn't holding his breath around me! That's part of why he doesn't want me anymore, and he's right for it!" Bella was beginning to sound hysterical. "What happened was not you're fault, Jasper, because who in their right mind willingly exposes themselves to such temptation all the time? Who on Earth wants to put themselves through that? I'm a fragile, tasty, clumsy human, Jasper! I'm food, and I'm not worth it!"

"Yes you are!" I growled a little too fiercely. Bella recoiled slightly, though her reaction was still amazingly fearless. She was merely startled. "Bella, you are not food. Not to us. Not to our family. To us, you are a courageous, trusting, warm, loving, wonderful girl, and Edward is a fool for giving you up so easily. Dammit, Bella, don't you realize that what happened with James only strengthened our bond with you? None of us wanted to leave you, Bella. Alice was absolutely devastated! She hated leaving you, but we all decided that it was Edward's decision to make. We respected his wishes, and we shouldn't have. We should have respected yours. You wanted to stay with us. You wanted to change for us, and we were wrong to deny you that... Please, Bella. We had no idea what we were really doing to you. James was merciful, compared to us. I'm so sorry, Bella."

I watched Bella closely as her wide, shocked eyes went from my face to her right hand. She stared at the prominent bite scar that would forever remind her of the vampire who so nearly took her life… and that gave me and idea.

"Bella?" I spoke tentatively, sampling Bella's emotions as I spoke. She looked back up to meet my eyes. Curiosity and confusion. "I know Edward told you Carlisle's story, and I know you heard about what happened to Esme, and you found out what happened to Alice before she knew the truth herself, but… Did Edward ever tell you anything about me?" Surprise. "Or Rosalie?" Utter shock.

"Rosalie?" Bella asked incredulously. Some of her earlier biting tone returned when she continued. "I guess I don't know about all the rest of you, Jasper, but Rosalie hated me. Or have you forgotten? Rosalie wanted to let James have me. No, Edward never told me anything about her, and I was never all that compelled to ask." Perhaps mentioning Rosalie was an errant thought I should have considered more carefully. I had my reasons.

"I suppose Rosalie won't like that I told you this," I conceded, "but believe it or not, you two do share at least one experience in common… well… mostly, as it were. If Edward never spoke about Rosalie with you at all, then he must not have mentioned the one time she did approve of how determined he was to protect you." Bella's chocolaty brown eyes widened and I could feel her utter disbelief. I nodded.

"When Edward saved you from those four men in Port Angeles, two of whom I just had to save you from again…" Just that easily, I was furious again, and I had to pause for a moment, to recompose myself. "Rosalie did approve of that, not that she ever would have willingly admitted it. Edward saw it in her mind though, and I could feel it. She was glad Edward saved you from… from being raped, and possibly killed by those men, because that is what happened to her." Just that easily, Bella's emotions went from disbelief and defensiveness to sympathy and alarm. I smiled despite myself. Bella was so incredibly compassionate, and selfless in her compassion.

"When Rosalie was your age, and still human… Well, the world was a very different place back then, Bella," I explained. "It was not unusual at all for seventeen and eighteen-year-old young women to be married and bearing children. Rosalie wanted a family, and her remarkable beauty made her quite the candidate for what she wanted. Her parents, of course, were not unaware of that fact. Her mother deliberately displayed her in front of the wealthiest, most influential men she could find where they lived. One man named Royce King was the epitome of wealth and status. Rosalie was dangled before him like bait on a hook, and he did not hesitate to claim her. They were engaged shortly after they met. Once the thrill of the chase was over though, once every man around knew Rosalie Hale belonged to him, Royce… grew tired of her." I let those last words drip with venom, so Bella not only heard the sarcasm, but the implication of what was to come.

"One night, shortly before their wedding date, Rosalie was walking the short distance back to her home from the home of a friend she had been visiting, and she came across Royce and a few of his friends. They were standing in the street, drunk and making quite the spectacle of themselves from how Rosalie tells it. When her husband-to-be called out to her… It would have been scandalously improper for her to ignore him. She approached him and the other three men…" I stopped when I felt the sheer horror and comprehension pouring off Bella. I skipped ahead in the story.

"Carlisle, Edward, and Esme lived around the same town at that time. Carlisle was the town doctor, and Esme was known to be his wife, and Edward was pretending to be her brother. Carlisle was out that night and he smelled all the blood, so he went to investigate. He found Rosalie barely alive, having been left for dead. She was bleeding and broken, but her heart was still beating… Carlisle took her back to his home and changed her. At the time, he not only wanted to save her life, but believed she could be for Edward what Esme was for him, but Edward never wanted her that way, and she found Emmett later…"

Bella was very still, her breathing quiet. She stared at me in wonder for a long moment, dozens of different emotions coursing through her. I waited for her to speak. "So..." She said after a long moment, "When she found out what those men would have done to me, if Edward hadn't stopped them…" I nodded.

"Rosalie is a vain, shallow, highly judgmental person, Bella," I said. "I don't really mean to insult her by saying that. I'm just stating a fact which even she knows to be true. She is not completely without feeling, though. She is not unable to hold compassion for others at all. She just struggles because… She never wanted this life. She wanted that life. Before Royce King and his friends hurt her, all she wanted was to marry that man and have his children. She wanted to be a wife, and a mother, and she wanted to run a home of her own. Being a vampire deprives her of some of those things she desires most. She has a husband in Emmett, but she usually has to hide the fact that they're married. In this time, they're considered by many to be too young to have such a relationship, based on their physical appearances. Having children is impossible for her. She wants so much to be human, and you wanted to give that up."

"I must have seemed so callous to her," Bella murmured, finally understanding. "But it's like you said: In this time, things like marriage and children never really crossed my mind. The opposite. My mom raised me to believe marriage and children can wait. She and my dad married straight out of high school and had me within the same year. She always insists she doesn't regret what they did, because she's happy to have me, but... No wonder Rosalie hates me so much…"

"Oh, just you wait until she finds out about all of this," I said, looking around Bella's bedroom before looking back down at the confused expression on her face. "What Edward did to you," I clarified, "and what those same men tried to do to you again. Rosalie will be furious with him, Bella. Few things are as inexcusable to Rosalie as so ruthlessly breaking someone's heart. That kind of thing hits too close to home for her…" Bella considered those words for a moment. Judging from the emotions coming from her, she was trying to decide if she liked the idea of Rosalie being so angry with Edward or not.

"She wouldn't really hurt him, would she?" Bella asked me when her protective nature won out. I tried not to laugh incredulously. How could this girl be so forgiving? I shrugged.

"It's difficult to say," I answered honestly. "Without seeing what he did to you with her own eyes, probably not. If she were to see what I see now, what I've seen over these past few days… Well, even I will have trouble not tearing him to pieces the next time I see him." Bella winced at the grim sincerity I allowed into my voice.

"Please don't," she said. "Please don't hurt him. I… It's not his…"

"Don't say it's not his fault," I warned. Saying such a thing right to my face would not help her case. "Your incredible capacity to forgive is an admirable quality, Bella, but you are much too forgiving with him. He doesn't deserve it. You deserve so much better."

"Don't," Bella suddenly whimpered, and she closed her eyes as a couple fresh tears escaped from them. "That's what Edward always said. He said he was a monster, and I deserved better… Just… don't…" Some of Bella's long hair fell across her face and I couldn't help but reach over and brush it away, wiping away some of her tears in the same motion. She opened her eyes and looked up at me with a look I wouldn't have been able to understand without my empathetic sense: Confusion, wonder, surprise, sadness, curiosity, need…

"What about you?" She asked suddenly. So, her tactic would be to change the subject. "You asked me if Edward told me anything about you. He didn't. He was always wary of telling me personal things about any of you. With his power to read minds, he felt… intrusive… like it was a betrayal of your trust to tell me about things that should be private to you, safe in your thoughts. He talked about you the least of all, actually, and I'm kind of wondering…"

"Yes, Bella?" I prompted her when she hesitated.

"You seem more… controlled… than you used to be," Bella whispered tentatively, wary of offending me it seemed. "I mean, I always trusted you before, but… You always kept your distance from me. When we were in the movie theatre, those men were bleeding a lot. I was bleeding, and it was more than just a papercut. Not only did you keep control, but you stayed and helped me… I guess I'm just wondering what changed so much in three months?" I nodded, completely understanding her confusion. I really did have some explaining to do.

"To understand the end, you need to understand the beginning, Bella," I began. "Back when I was changed, I was an officer in the Confederate Army, in Texas, during the Civil War..." With that, I began my story. I told Bella everything, including some details Edward probably wouldn't have approved of her hearing, but which seemed to interest her. I told her about Maria, about the Southern vampire wars and the newborn armies. I told her how the Volturi eventually became involved. I was a little surprised that she already seemed to know a little about them, but I didn't break the course of my story to ask her about that. In general, Bella amazed me.

When I told her how much death I had on my hands, not only did she not cringe away from me, but she sat up and moved closer to me, deliberately sending waves of understanding and sympathy my way. When I told her about the vampire population in the South being decimated when the Volturi intervened, I could have been telling her about a group of puppies drowning. She felt sorry for all the lives lost! The word 'lives' being used lightly, of course. These were monsters, killers, and she still felt some compassion for them. I told her about how I met Alice, how Alice made me feel hope for the first time in almost a century, and Bella felt it too. Hope and happiness poured out of Bella and into me, not just the other way around…

Finally, when I told Bella I wanted her to see some of the scars I'd received during that century of war, she got up and grabbed a flashlight out of her closet. When she climbed back onto her bed, she sat close to me and handed me the flashlight. I turned it on and pointed the beam of light at my neck. Bella gasped when the concentrated light threw all the scars there into relief, making them visible to her human eyes. I rolled up one of my long sleeves and turned the light onto the exposed skin of my arm. As she looked over all the scars there, she touched her own bite scar, seemingly subconsciously. Her long, dark hair created a curtain that covered her face as she looked down at my arm, so I was feeling for her reaction with my emotional sense. Such measures proved unnecessary, though. Same old Bella; her body still betrayed her. I couldn't see her face very well, but I saw and felt a tear from her eye fall and splash across my skin. She reached out and brushed it away herself, tentatively feeling the texture of the scarred skin it wetted.

"May I?" I asked, and Bella looked up to see that I was gesturing to her scarred right hand. She held it out to me readily. No fear or hesitation at all. I held her hand in one of mine and lightly ran my fingers over the scar. It felt so different on her skin than the similar scars felt on mine. The scar itself was a few degrees cooler than the rest of her skin, and a little harder and smoother. The surrounding skin was warmer and softer. The scar almost felt like hybrid skin; part human, part vampire. It made me wonder… "What does it look like in the sunlight?" Bella laughed lightly. The sound was somewhat grim, but it was still nice to hear.

"I guess you never saw it, did you?" She said. "You always kept your distance, and it wasn't very sunny that summer after James attacked me… And when it was sunny, I always went off to the meadow with Edward… It has a really faint glow in the sunlight. Nothing too noticeable, not to human eyes anyway. It's certainly not as conspicuous as your skin. It's just…" Bella sighed heavily and I looked up to see her eyes were closed. The pain that my stories had distracted her from was returning. I was instantly anxious to stop it.

"What is it, Bella?" I almost pleaded. "What's wrong?" I sent a gentle wave of ease into her, to help her collect herself. She gave me a brief, grateful smile.

"The bite…" She began. "The scar, and how it shimmers in the sunlight, how it feels cooler and harder… It's just a constant reminder of how close I came. Everything I wanted, then… If the venom had only been left to spread… It sounds stupid, but I like to think one small part of me made it… That one small piece of me is a vampire. The rest of me just got left behind." Bella's pain intensified, and I felt the hole inside her ache. She thought of herself as being in pieces. One piece of her a vampire, another piece still human, and another piece was missing altogether. That hole was inside her because she had been left behind. It was too much.

"Come here, Bella?" I said, my wariness of making her uncomfortable making my words a question. I pointedly opened my arms for her and she looked at me in surprise… and mild discomfort.

"You aren't going to…?" She said, and I knew she was thinking of how I'd used my power on her earlier.

"Yes, but not like that," I told her. "Please, just let me try to help you, Bella? You have no idea what you're doing to me right now. All the pain you're in… It's crippling, even to me. Believe it or not, you have made a vampire collapse before. A couple times now, I've been here and I've felt that hole in your chest. I've felt that indescribable pain and it has literally pinned me to the ground. For both our sakes, Bella, please let me help you." That admission shocked Bella, to say the least, and then she felt… Oh, that's just perfect. "Please, please don't feel guilty for how you're affecting me, Bella. I can't take that. Just let me hold you, please?"

Bella nodded slowly and crawled tentatively into my arms, resting her head uncertainly against my chest. I wrapped my arms lightly around her and focused on ridding her of her pain… On ridding us of her pain, at least for a while.

"What about this, Jasper?" Bella whispered after a moment. "I understand why controlling your thirst was so difficult for you now, but what changed? How can you do this with me and still be okay?"

"I always hated feeling so weak when compared with the rest of our family," I explained, deliberately saying 'our family' instead of 'my family'. I was determined to make Bella realize how much we still cared for her. "When I attacked you, … That was absolutely unbearable. I realized then that a big part of my problem had to do with the fact that I kept excusing my behavior, writing it off as natural and unavoidable, and it wasn't just me. The others wrote it off as an inevitable result of my past too, but the truth is, there is no excuse.

"I understand that you forgive what I did, Bella, and I'm eternally grateful for your understanding, but that doesn't mean I can forgive myself. After we left, I decided I was done excusing myself and letting others excuse me. Attacking someone who meant so much to me and my family…" Oops. "Our family… That was not something that was excusable. Up in Denali, where all of us but Edward have been staying with some other vegetarian friends of ours, I asked everyone to help me stop for good. Tanya, Kate, Irina, Carmen, Eleazar, and our whole family helped me push through all my shortcomings, where blood was involved at least.

"In these past three months, I've worked harder than ever, not only controlling my appetite for human blood, but making myself more… aware of it, like the others. I never used to be able to differentiate between the scents of humans, you see, but now…" I deliberately inhaled Bella's sweet scent, deeply enough that she could feel the rise and fall of my chest where her head laid against it. "Our entire family knew you smelled like freesia, but I can only pick up on that now. It's strange how it worked out, really. Now that I've become more sensitive to the complexity of your scent, it smells even more appealing to me, but my urge to risk harming you just to taste it is significantly lessened.

"That's why I can't forgive what Edward did to you, Bella," I said softly, "even if you can forgive him. The thought of how close I came to hurting you made me change, Bella. Almost two centuries of being tempted by human blood, and the temptation of your blood changed my life forever. I almost killed you over a papercut, and here I'm holding you in my arms, trying to repair the damage Edward did. I almost hurt you. He did hurt you, and did so deliberately. Even if he was unconscious of how much he hurt you, it was deliberate. I came back. He ran away… I can't understand how he could do that, Bella. I just can't."

Bella said nothing. She didn't move in my arms. She was clearly lost in thought. We stayed like that for several minutes, me holding her and soothing her while she rested in the solace of my influence. Almost ten minutes passed before she spoke.

"Charlie and I are going down to La Push in the morning," She said softly. "Billy Black invited us over for New Year's breakfast with some of the other Quileutes… Will you… Will you still be here when I get back?" Incredible. Bella still doubted, still expected me to leave her just as Edward had. It was apparently going to take a while to win back her complete trust… and I planned to remain here for that.

"I'm not going anywhere, Bella," I promised her. "You know I can't go near La Push, but I'll be waiting at my house. I will be there when you get back. I'm not going to leave you, Bella. I may have spent almost a century fighting armies of newborn vampires, but knowingly hurting you again would take strength I just don't have in me. Now that I've felt your pain, I can't leave you alone with it, Bella. I won't." There was another long pause as I waited for some kind of response from Bella. After a minute of silence, she released a wave of trust and gratitude.

"Jasper?"

"Yes, Bella?"

"Could you help me get to sleep? It's one-thirty in the morning and I have to be up early." I turned to look at the alarm clock on the bedside table and I saw she was right. I laughed softly.

"Of course, Bella," I said. "Would you rather I ease you into it or put you under quickly?"

"Slowly, please," Bella answered quickly. I laughed again. I didn't really expect her to take the second option. I started slowly increasing the amount of lethargy I was pouring into her, and I lowered us both down so we were laying side-by-side on her bed instead of sitting up. Bella reached a hand back behind her and pulled the throw blanket that was no longer covering her rocking chair up over her body. I moved my arms outside of the blanket, so she would be warmer.

"Bella?" I whispered to her when I almost had her asleep.

"Mmm?" She murmured.

"Do you want me to stay and keep your dreams away? I know they're horrible…" Bella tried to answer, but even I couldn't understand her garbled response, which she seemed to guess. She nodded instead. The head movement was infinitesimal, but it was enough.

"Bella?" I whispered, again. She gave no answer, but I knew she could hear me, and she was not quite asleep yet. "I'll do everything I can to make this New Year happier for you." A faint smile touched Bella's lips, and that was enough response for me. Not two seconds later, I had her asleep, and I held her in my arms for the rest of the night, not once tempted by her sweet-smelling blood.


	6. Revenge

♀︎(Bella's POV)

When I woke up, I had to blink a few times to make sure I wasn't dreaming, not that the feeling of the cold body so close to me wasn't proof enough. My dreams were vivid and realistic, but not that realistic. I was still in Jasper's arms. He hadn't left. It took me a moment to realize he was the reason I woke up so easily. I could feel the excitement he was pouring into me.

"Sorry," he murmured, smiling at the look of confusion on my face. "I guess I should be careful not to overdo it. Too much enthusiasm might make your father suspicious. He'll be ready to go to La Push in a few minutes, and he will feel better about it if you seem like you might actually enjoy yourself. Honestly, I really do feel sorry for him…" Jasper frowned at me when that last part reignited my confusion. "Even if I weren't an empath, Bella, just seeing what all this has done to you would be excruciating enough, and I haven't even been here for an entire week. Your father has been seeing this for months…" Oh. I understood, and I felt terrible. Jasper immediately countered those feelings with a slew of counterfeit emotions, all of them positive and relaxing.

"Sorry, Jasper," I said, pushing myself up and trying to stand up too fast, giving myself a head rush. Jasper was beside me before I could even begin to sway.

"Easy, Bella," he said, catching me in his arms and holding me steady. "It's okay." I was surprised when I suddenly felt discomfort that did not belong to me. I twisted around in Jasper's arms and looked up at him. He looked...perplexed. I was about to ask him what was wrong, but he regained control over the emotions he was leaking out and he spoke first.

"Charlie's coming," he said, his dark gold eyes looking in the direction of my door as though he were peering right through it. "I need to go." My heart rate immediately accelerated and I stared at the floor, trying not to cry. One of Jasper's hands gently pulled my face back up until I met his eyes with mine. "I need to go back to my house," he qualified. "You know where that is. That's where I'll be, I promise." Jasper did look sincere as he gazed down at me, but vampires were good liars. I knew that. If I let allowed myself to hope and he didn't come back…

Jasper pulled me closer to him and he hugged me. He wasn't as gentle as usual either. He didn't hurt me, but he held me snugly in his stone arms. I couldn't move an inch if I tried. I didn't want to move. I didn't want to break his hold on me. The strength of it made it more real, made him more real, more present. That seemed to be the point.

"I'm here, Bella," He said. "I'll see you when you get back from La Push. Just…" That hesitation bothered me. I laid my hands against Jasper's stone chest and pushed. My strength was futile against him, but he relented to it anyway. He took a step back from me and I looked up at him quizzically. He looked a little… guilty. That was all it took to send my heart pounding in panic again.

"No, no, Bella, I'm not going back on my word!" Jasper instantly caught on to my assumption. "I promised you I'll stay, and I will! I only hesitated because I don't want to sound too much like Edward in saying this, but… please be careful, Bella. I know you hate it when we're overprotective with you, but especially after what happened last night, I can't help but worry about you."

"You already awake, Bells?" Charlie's voice made me jump. He sounded close. In less time than it took me to blink, Jasper was gone. Charlie knocked on my door three seconds later.

"Y-yeah, Dad," I stammered as I tried to collect myself. "I'm just getting ready to go. I'll be down in a few minutes."

"Oh." Charlie sounded surprised by something. What did I do? "Um… Who were you talking to, Bells?" Holy crow! He heard me and Jasper talking?!

"Singing, Dad," I spat out the first decent excuse that came to mind.

"Singing?" Now he sounded truly shocked. Maybe because I haven't even been listening to music in months? Great thinking, stupid human.

"A song from the movie last night," I lied again. "Got stuck in my head. Um… I need to shower, Dad." I heard Charlie walk away without another word. I should have skipped to one of his weaknesses to begin with. Shopping for clothes, personal hygiene, boys... Usually, any one of those subjects was enough to send him running. Crying in front of him was kryptonite. Then there was the s-word, and any topics immediately associated with it. I had yet to drop that bomb on him, and I never planned to if I could avoid it. Too cruel to him and too embarrassing for both of us.

"Jasper?" I whispered, once I was sure Charlie was out of hearing range. Jasper stepped out of my closet, holding the remains of the car stereo I'd hidden there.

"There's nothing to feel guilty about, Bella," He said as soon as he felt my reaction to the sight. He didn't use his power to smother my feelings. "You were hurt, when we left. I notice, a few days ago that Edward stole away any mementos you had of him. The picture, the CD... It was a repulsively callous thing for him to do. What you kept or didn't keep should have been your choice. The decision is such a highly personal one, after all. Keeping reminders of your time with us hurts you, but so does losing them… I understand, Bella. Please, don't feel guilty about this. Everything about your last birthday was wrong, in so many ways."

I wasn't sure how to react to that. Jasper and I just stood there in silence for a moment that seemed to stretch on for hours. "I need to get ready," I finally whispered. "I'll see you when I get back?" Jasper nodded and leapt out my open window, taking the ruined car stereo with him. With a heavy sigh, I half-consciously grabbed some clothes from my closet and headed off to the bathroom for a quick shower.

Charlie and I drove over to La Push separately; me in my truck and him in the police cruiser. Charlie was technically still on duty, so he needed to be able to leave at a moment's notice without worrying about leaving me behind. Jacob was waiting in front of his house when we pulled up.

"Hey, Bella." He said flatly, as I climbed out of my truck. I noticed right away that he was very different from how I remembered. For one thing, he was at least a whole foot taller than when I'd last seen him a couple months before. The muscles in his arms and chest were thick and defined, barely concealed by his too-small t-shirt. He'd chopped his hair short, and his face was much more chiseled, especially his strong jaw. The line of his jaw was particularly noticeable as he looked at me. He looked really angry at me for some reason. He was almost glaring at me. I couldn't think of anything I'd done to him to upset him so much, unless he took my few months of isolation more personally than anyone else in town… No. He was almost shaking with anger. This was worse.

Trying to repair whatever damage I'd unknowingly caused to my friendship with Jacob, I tentatively walked forward and hugged his giant frame. I was startled by how hot he felt, and his reaction startled me even more. He tensed and… Was he growling at me? I froze. He began shaking even more and he pushed me away from him roughly. I started to fall, but someone caught me from behind. I looked up and recognized the same boy who had found me in the forest three months ago. Did Charlie say his name was Sam Uley? Sam wasn't looking back at me as he held me steady.

"Go, Jacob," He ordered in a surprisingly authoritative voice. This boy wasn't much older than me. A couple years, maybe. He was big, though. Roughly the same height as Jacob and maybe a little more muscular. He wore his hair cropped short too, and his features were just as hard. His hands on my arms also felt hot as he righted me. In fact, he looked angry too. No. Not just angry… He finally looked down at me when Jacob turned and ran off into the nearby forest, and he looked… disgusted. What did I do?!

"I'm not sure if you remember me, Bella," he said as he took a step back from me. "I'm Sam Uley. We met when you and your friends came to the beach before. And I was the one who found you that night... After the Cullens left?" I had opened my mouth to respond, but I clamped it shut at the tone of those last few words. After the Cullens left? Something about the way he said that made it sound like he was asking me… If they were still gone? For a moment, I panicked. How could he know that?! Surely he didn't. I was probably just being paranoid.

"I remember," I replied, a few seconds late. "Both times. I mean, I'd forgotten your name, but… um… What's wrong with Jacob?" Probably not the best question to ask, but my fit of panic was making me babble like an idiot.

"He's been having some trouble with one of his friends lately," Sam answered quickly. A little too quickly. He looked over in the direction Jacob had gone, and I instantly got the feeling that I was missing something. Something big. "He hasn't been talking to his old friend, Quil," I blinked when Sam continued in an even more casual tone. "There's just been some strain between them, and it's hard. He just needs to cool off. He'll be back." Cool off?

"Hey, are you and Jacob sick?" I asked. "I just noticed you both feel really warm. Do you two have a fever or something?" Sam kept his face smooth, but as if borrowing Jasper's extra sense, I could feel his sudden discomfort and… was it alarm? Or fear? What was going on?

"Did you not see the smoke, Bella?" Sam asked after a short pause. He pointed up above the Black's house. I looked up and saw a tower of smoke that seemed to be rising from behind the house. "We have a little bonfire going around back. Jacob and I were probably sitting a little too close when we heard you pull up."

"Oh." Pathetic response, but that was all I could come up with for the moment. My mouth simply refused to work right when my head was spinning so fast. I was definitely missing something, and it was probably going to make me as skittish as a rabbit on the freeway as long as I stayed.

"Hey, Bella. Long time, no see." I turned to see Billy smiling at me. Charlie and Harry Clearwater were standing on either side of him, arguing about baseball from the sound of it. Sam turned and jogged off as soon as I was distracted. I frowned as I watched him run the same way as Jacob, but I walked over to Billy, trying to return his smile. He was, after all, the first person to not look somehow revolted by my presence.

"Hi, Billy. Thanks for inviting us over," I added conventionally. I was usually pretty comfortable talking to Billy, but everything felt so awkward. Part of me wanted to think it was just me reacting to all that'd happened in the past two days: Those men attacking me, Jasper showing up to save me, Jacob's strange animosity… but another part of me balked at that idea. That rebellious, intuitive part of me told me Billy wasn't acting normal either. He was making a better attempt at it than Jacob and Sam, but…

"Where did Jacob and Sam take off to?" Charlie asked Billy, looking concernedly in the direction of the forest both boys had run into. "It's not safe to be running around the forests here with that bear around. Another hiker turned up dead last night, you know."

"They're probably just gathering a little more wood," Billy answered. "The fire in back is burning a little low. They'll be right back. They're tough boys, Charlie. They can fend for themselves pretty well."

"Well, I guess you're right there," Charlie laughed. "What have you been feeding the boys around here? It seems like you can just stand and watch them grow. Your boy, Jake, shot up faster than any boy I've ever seen. Isn't he only sixteen?"

"Seventeen in a few more months," Billy laughed. "A lot of the boys around here are growing like that. Just wait until you see some of the others in back. Who knows? Maybe it is something in the water." Liar. He knew something.

Billy turned his chair around and Charlie pushed him along as he led us around back. As we came around the last corner, I heard more voices. "Why don't you boys make yourselves useful and stand around the fire until the wind dies down a little," I heard Sue Clearwater saying. "You're all tall enough. Make a wall!" There was a round of laughter from many different people. When I could finally see all of them, the wind Sue was talking about tore through the little clearing, coming from behind me and making my hair whip across my face. As soon as I could see again, I noticed three very tall boys glaring daggers at me. Great.

"I left my jacket in the truck, Dad," I said quickly, turning away from all the glares.

"You'll warm up by the fire, Bells," Charlie said brightly, oblivious to the hostility I was receiving.

"Me and open fires don't mix well, Dad," I said. "I might fall in and get burned. I'm going to get my jacket." Charlie just laughed as I turned and walked away, as did a few other people from around the fire. I doubted any of the huge boys were among them. Either way, I didn't turn back around to check. It was when I was standing next to my truck, pulling on my jacket, that I was hit by a tidal wave of déjà vu and intuition.

Standing by my truck… The van crash… The Cullens… Their hostility toward me… The people being killed, then… "Killed by some kind of animal…" Not an animal… Vampires… Nomads hunting in the area… Tricking Jacob into telling me about the Cullens… The treaty… Billy and some of the others knowing the truth about the Cullens… They knew that I knew… Sam Uley… "The Cullens don't come here…" The forest… "Have you been hurt…" Jacob's hostility… The way all those other boys glared at me… "After the Cullens left…" The Quileutes know something Charlie doesn't… Vampires…

Before I registered what I was doing, I was climbing inside my truck and starting the engine. It roared to life, probably alerting everyone nearby that I was leaving, but I didn't care. I still couldn't make sense of what was happening to Jake and the other boys. Everything else, though… This had something to do with vampires. All of it. I was sure of it. I needed to talk to Jasper. People were dying because of what was happening, and I couldn't shake off the feeling that it had something to do with me... again.

I couldn't believe how easily I remembered the way to the Cullens' house. After three months of struggling to bury so many painful memories in my mind, I found they hadn't even budged. Even in my own head, I fought like a weak little human. Well, at least that was the case when I was my own opponent. My mind was still undefeated by supernatural powers such as Edward's. I couldn't think about Edward, though. My mind was on Jasper. His powers could affect me, he was the only Cullen here, and he was the only one who could help me.

Jasper was on the front porch, when I pulled up to the house. I had expected as much. With his hearing, he could hear my truck coming from a mile away. When I started to get out of my truck, he suddenly sprang forward and landed in front of my door, slipping into a defensive crouch.

"Stay inside, Bella," he warned in a low growl. My heart skipped a beat.

"Is it the other vampires?" I whispered, knowing he could hear me. Jasper tensed even more.

"Other vampires?" He demanded. I blinked. If he wasn't reacting like this to other vampires, what was…?

Wolves. Gigantic, horse-sized wolves. Five of them stalked forward, emerging from the trees. Four pairs of eyes were trained on Jasper. The fifth pair was on me. The second-largest of the wolves, one with russet colored fur, looked at me with such emotional eyes; I was momentarily entranced by them. In them was hurt, anger, fear, love, betrayal, friendship… All of a sudden, I knew.

The huge, hostile boys, their strange growth and heat, the way they reacted to me… when they were close enough to smell me. I'd gone to La Push smelling like Jasper. They smelled a vampire on me, and vampires were killing people around here. The big, black wolf in the center had to be the 'bear' everyone was seeing, not killing people but trying to save them from the vampires, because vampires like the Cullens were their enemies… The stories Jacob told me… vampires and…

"Werewolves… Jacob!" I screamed and I tried to open my door. Jasper used one hand to effortlessly hold it shut, never taking his eyes off the advancing wolves. A warning growl rumbled in his chest. "Jasper, stop!” I screamed. "Jacob, I know it's you!" I continued screaming, as I looked back up at the russet wolf. "Please, stop! Jasper didn't do anything! I know what's going on! Please!”

The russet wolf stopped in its tracks and stared at me. The one bigger wolf, the black one, growled and looked back at him. They stared at each other for a moment, and then the black wolf let out one sharp bark and the whole pack of wolves stopped moving. Their eyes never left Jasper.

"Jasper, let me out," I said in a shaky voice. Jasper hesitated, but he straightened out of his crouch after a moment and helped me climb out of my truck. Tension was still visible in his body. He kept his eyes on the wolves and he held me close as he spoke to me.

"What are you talking about, Bella?" He asked in a tight but forced-gentle voice. I looked at the giant wolves staring at me with a human level of interest, and my confidence wavered. Jasper wrapped me in a wave of reassurance and security. He was determined to keep me safe. I looked squarely at the russet wolf.

"Jacob?" I asked. The wolf nodded its big head. A gray one let out a low growl and the black one growled back at it. Jasper's hold on me tightened and I felt the wave of calm he was beginning to project outward.

"Wait, Jasper," I told him. His dark gold eyes flickered down to me, then back up to the wolves. "You'll startle them. They probably don't know what you can do." The russet wolf whimpered. I looked up at him and I instinctively knew the whimper was a question.

"Jasper can feel and affect the emotions of others around him," I told Jacob and the other wolves. "He wants to calm you down a little, but I didn't want him to surprise you with it. He won't do anything but help you stay calm." I thought about asking him if that was okay, but I decided against that course of action. I was sure the wolves would say no, and I needed them calm. I nudged Jasper with my shoulder, signaling him to go ahead. The gray wolf growled again, but he stopped as soon Jasper's power reached him. I instantly felt relief that had nothing to do with Jasper.

"I didn't realize what was going on until I saw you at your house," I began, looking back at the Jacob-wolf. "The hikers that have been turning up dead these past few months… The 'bear' everyone is talking about doesn't exist, does it? They've been seeing you, haven't they?" Jacob inclined his head toward the black wolf beside him. The black wolf nodded. "But you aren't the killers?" Jacob shook his head. "You're trying to stop vampires that are killing those people?" Jacob nodded. I nodded too.

"Jasper has only been here a few days," I said as firmly as I could manage. "And the Cullens don't feed on humans, anyway. Jasper has nothing to do with any of this. He probably doesn't even know what's going on," I said, and I looked up at Jasper. His eyes were finally on me instead of the wolves. "Do you?" Jasper shook his head.

"I've only hunted a couple times since I returned," he said, "and I've been staying very close, trying to keep an eye on you. I never came across any new scents…" I nodded and looked back at the wolves.

"You see," I said. I looked right into the Jacob-wolf's eyes, and I remembered his behavior back at his house.

"Are you angry with me because I tricked you into breaking the treaty and telling me about the Cullens?" I asked, "When you didn't know all those legends were true?" Jacob nodded. I bit my lip and felt my eyes tearing up as I realized just how much that must have hurt Jacob. "And because I stayed close to them, when I knew… when I know they're vampires?" Jacob's eyes flicked down to the arm Jasper still had around me and he whimpered. The tears in my eyes spilled over, but I also became a little angry myself.

"Well, what about you?" I demanded in a stronger voice than I'd used yet. "You're a werewolf?! I wasn't the only one withholding, Jacob!"

"Careful, Bella," Jasper warned, and he threw out another strong wave of calm. My eyes didn't leave the russet wolf.

Jacob stared back at me with an expression I couldn't translate. Then, after a few seconds of ringing silence, the russet wolf walked slowly forward. Jacob walked in front of the other wolves and made his way around to the other side of my truck. Jasper continued to hold me fast and he watched Jacob closely. When Jacob was mostly obscured by my truck, his body started vibrating. I watched in awe as he collapsed, only to stand back up a moment later in human form. He didn't come back out from behind my truck. Was he trying to keep a barrier between him and Jasper? All the other wolves were certainly watching him fearfully.

"We all changed so fast when we heard you leaving," Jacob started to explain, sounding a little… embarrassed? "Our clothes get shredded when we phase…" He let his voice trail off implicitly.

"Oh!" I gasped. It occurred to me the, that I could only see Jacob from the chest up. He was definitely shirtless… For the first time in almost four months, I blushed as red as a traffic light. I saw Jacob's eyes snap up to Jasper's face but my blush didn't seem to bother Jasper one bit. In fact, when I looked up at him, he smiled at me.

"There's the Bella I remember," He said warmly. "Glad to see you're coming back."

"No thanks to you," Jacob growled. I turned back to him to see him glaring daggers at Jasper. "We're the ones who found her, you know. Your leech brother left her broken in the woods, and she still hasn't recovered! I still can't believe… What the hell is wrong with you, Bella?!" Jacob suddenly turned his anger on me. "They left you! Every day, you risked your life to be near them, and they dropped you like a piece of trash when they decided they were ready to move on with their parasite lives!"

"We did no such thing," Jasper said with amazing calm, though his voice was firm. "I understand your anger. I can feel it, actually. You don't understand what really happened, though."

"By all means," Jacob said scathingly, "explain, bloodsucker."

"I assume you were all suspicious, when we brought Bella back from Phoenix in such bad condition?" Jacob gave a curt nod in response. "That was the work of another vampire. The deaths happening around here then were the work of three nomads. Their names were James, Victoria, and Laurent. We ran into them one night, when we had Bella with us. James was a tracker, a vampire with a special talent for hunting, and he chose to hunt Bella when he saw how protective of her we all were. The female, Victoria, chose to help him, while Laurent left them in favor of trying to convert to… our lifestyle... We took Bella to Phoenix in an effort to hide her, but James got to her anyway. We barely managed to bring her back alive. He even bit her."

"What?!" Jacob practically howled in outrage. The other wolves growled too. I looked up at Jasper and he nodded. He helped me pull my jacket off, and I rolled up my right sleeve. I showed the scar on my hand to Jacob and the other wolves, provoking another round of growls. Jacob even started vibrating. Jasper looked directly at him and I felt the strong wave of calm he shot out.

"Stop that, leech!" Jacob snapped irritably, glowering at Jasper.

"Can you keep yourself from phasing, dog?" Jasper asked coolly.

"Yes," Jacob growled.

"Then, shall I continue?" Jasper asked in the same tone. Jacob swallowed something he was about to say and nodded instead.

"Edward kept Bella from changing by sucking the venom back out of the wound, and Carlisle was able to tend to her other injuries," Jasper continued. "Edward… He loved Bella, and he was always concerned for her safety, as she was spending so much of her time around vampires just to be with him. He encouraged her to leave us and stay with other humans like you… Like you were. After she was so nearly killed by the tracker, he decided he had to be the one to end associations with her, for her safety. None of the rest of us wanted to leave Bella. None of the rest of us agreed with his decision, but we respected it. When we left…" Jasper seemed to struggle with what he was saying, especially while speaking in this company.

"Listen to me, dog… Jacob," He finally spoke again, and his voice was dripping with unmistakable sincerity and contrition. "I and the rest of my family had no idea of what exactly Edward was going to say to Bella when we left. We had no idea what he was going to do. I only returned, alone, a few days ago. When I saw just what we'd done to Bella, when I saw the condition we'd so blindly left her in… Believe me when I say I have never seen nor felt anything so crippling. You have no idea how sorry I am… but, if you wish, I can let you feel it?" Jacob blinked, thrown by that offer.

"Fine," he said after a moment. "There's no way we'll believe you otherwise, leech. Go ahead." Jasper nodded and he finally released me.

"Go sit on the stairs, Bella," Jasper told me, gesturing to front porch of his house behind us. "I want you out of range. I don't want you to feel this. Not yet. You're in no condition. I would like you to really understand sometime, but you're hurting too much right now. I don't want you feeling my pain on top of your own. Please." I couldn't really say no to an argument like that. I nodded and did as I was told, walking over to sit on the porch stairs. I watched as Jasper turned back to Jacob.

"Can you keep control?" Jasper asked him. "This won't be pleasant."

"For your sake, it had better not be pleasant," Jacob retorted acidly. "I'm fine, bloodsucker." Jasper nodded. A moment later, Jacob tensed and all the wolves whimpered in unison. I almost whimpered too, just seeing it happen. Jasper relented quickly.

"And that is the purest truth, Jacob," Jasper said in a soothing voice. I guessed that he was projecting calm to help the others recover. "That is my actual, raw feeling about Bella... All of it."

Jacob looked convinced. He was no longer glowering at Jasper, and the other wolves looked distinctly less hostile too, but… Why did Jacob look so hurt? Was he still feeling some of what Jasper projected to him? It was difficult to tell, but his expression did remind me…

"You never answered my question, Jacob," I said, standing up and walking back over to Jasper. He took one of my hands in his when I reached him and he gave it a light, reassuring squeeze. "You're upset with me for all of this, but you didn't tell me you were a wolf either. That seems like a bit of a double-standard, don't you think?"

"No," Jacob answered, looking me squarely in the eye. "I only changed two months ago," he said. "Even Embry didn't change until you got back from Phoenix." Jacob pointed at a caramel-colored wolf near him and the wolf lifted and dropped one paw. He was waving. I couldn't help but smile a little. "Paul and Jared only changed at about the time you moved here," Jacob continued. He pointed to the temperamental gray wolf and a chestnut brown wolf. "Sam changed when the Cullens first came back here, a few years ago." Jacob pointed to the black wolf. That was Sam Uley. I guess that made sense. "The gene in our tribe that causes the change is only active when there are vampires around," Jacob explained. "It pretty much reacts accordingly: More vampires, more of us changing into wolves. I haven't seen you since I changed, Bella," Jacob said in a somber tone. "It would have been dangerous, anyway. We can't control out phasing as well when we first change. The fact that I have this kind of control now ,especially this close to a vampire… That's really rare, Bella, and even if it weren't for all that, I still couldn't have told you." Jacob looked over at the black wolf again. Sam Uley.

"Sam is the alpha in this pack," he said. "He controls it. We're forbidden, as it is, to reveal what we are to anyone outside of our immediate families. That's why I didn't believe all the stories were true before. The alpha can also make an injunction. Sam made a specific injunction for us to stay away from you, Bella. He wanted us to avoid you, because you already knew too much. Technically, I did tell you. When I told you about the Cullens, I told you about vampires and werewolves, but you only cared about one vampires in the story before now. I physically couldn't go near you, Bella. No. It's not the same."

I was crying again. "I'm so sorry, Jacob," I said. "I didn't know… I didn't understand. I never meant to hurt you, Jacob. You're my friend… You were my best friend. I'm so sorry." Jacob and I just stared at each other for a moment, and then Jacob smiled. He smiled and he finally looked a little bit like the old Jacob I remembered.

"I still am your friend, Bella," he said. "I'm sorry, too." I smiled back at Jacob, thoroughly relieved. "After all," Jacob added, "it's not every day you find a girl who is so completely okay with the fact that you change into a giant wolf." That made me laugh outright. I had to be crazy. This really proved it. Everyone I cared about most, aside from my parents, was some kind of supernatural creature. Perfect.

"What about the other vampires?" Jasper asked suddenly, throwing ice water on my briefly lightened mood. "The ones hunting here now?" Jasper and I both looked at each wolf in turn, stopping on Jacob. His face was a hardened mask again. He looked at the black wolf. The alpha. The wolf nodded.

"There are two," Jacob told me and Jasper. "A red-haired female and a black-haired male. The male hasn't been here very long. He came and joined the female, recently. They keep approaching at odd angles, changing their course. They run into hikers and kill them before we can help. We've chased them off a couple times, but they get away, and then they come right back. That female, in particular… She's really fast and unpredictable. If we could just figure out what she and the male are after… What?" Jacob asked anxiously, looking at me with worried eyes. That made sense. I knew I had to look deathly pale.

"It's Victoria and Laurent," I whispered. Jasper growled ferociously and I jumped.

"Damn that Laurent!" He growled. "Damn him straight to Hell! Not only did he leave Irina, but he came back here?! He and Victoria…" Jasper made Victoria's name sound like an expletive. "I knew we should have tracked her," he hissed venomously. "I knew we shouldn't have just let her go. She felt so close to James… Oh, no." A look of horrified realization came across Jasper's face and he looked down at me with wide eyes. "It's you," he said.

"What do you mean?" I whispered, already afraid and really not liking where this seemed to be going. Jasper reached up and held my face tenderly in his hand. That did not help the knot in my stomach.

"I didn't think about it before, Bella," Jasper said softly, and I could feel the tension around me as Jacob and the other wolves hung on his every word. "When we first met James, Victoria, and Laurent, I could feel how strongly Victoria felt about James, but I just wrote it off as her being devoted to her coven. When Laurent left so easily… I should have seen it then, Bella. I'm so sorry."

"Sorry for what?!" Jacob suddenly snapped, the tension becoming too much for him. Jasper reluctantly looked away from my face, looking over at Jacob.

"I think James was Victoria's mate," he told Jacob.

"You mean…" Jacob began, looking anxiously at me. Jasper nodded.

"You do understand," Jasper said gravely. A flash of confusion crossed Jacob's face. "I can feel what you're feeling," Jasper reminded him.

"But I don't understand," I said, recalling their attention. "What's going on, Jasper?" I pleaded, looking up at him. "Is… Is Victoria here for me?" Jasper nodded.

"I think so," he answered. "It goes deeper than finishing what she and James started, Bella. Our kind… we generally don't take losing our mates very well. If James was Victoria's mate, and we killed James…"

"She wants revenge?" I asked. Jasper nodded again. "And because I'm the reason James fought you…?"

"She probably holds all of us responsible to some extent," Jasper said somberly, "but she probably intends to take it out on you, if she can." Jasper's earlier ferocity returned with those last three words.

"Not. Going. To. Happen." Jacob seethed, his fury also returning. The other wolves all growled in agreement. "We know what her target is now," Jacob said. "That will help. And this male, why did he come back? You said he wanted to try your… diet. And what was that about someone named Irina?"

"Laurent went up to stay with a coven in Alaska when he left James and Victoria," Jasper answered. "They're close friends of ours, and the only other vegetarian vampires we know of. Irina is one of them. She and Laurent became… close." Jacob made noise between a gag and a growl. Jasper nodded. "Apparently, Irina really doesn't mean all that much to him," Jasper hissed malevolently. "It would seem he's rejoined Victoria. He will be much easier to deal with. He clearly has commitment issues, and he doesn't have nearly as much motivation to harm Bella as Victoria does."

Even through all my fear, there was some awe. I remembered Jasper's story about his life and I could really see it. I could see the soldier from the human Civil War and the southern vampire wars reemerging, and it gave me hope. My fear by no means disappeared, but it was kept in check by the fact that I had Jasper here with me. If nothing else, I had him.

"You need to go," Jasper said suddenly, snapping me out of my reverie. He was looking at Sam. That surprised me. Jasper looked down at me, feeling my reaction. "He's worried," Jasper explained. "Because you left La Push unattended?" Jasper asked Sam. The black wolf nodded once. "Go. Just focus on guarding the humans for now," Jasper told him. "I'm going to call the rest of my family. I'll tell them they need to come back here to help. Maybe I can even get our friends in Denali to come too. We won't let Victoria and Laurent get away with this anymore." Sam growled at the mention of more vampires coming, but he still nodded his big head, and then he looked at Jacob.

"What about Bella?" Jacob asked, looking from Sam to Jasper. "What will you do with her now?"

"I'll stay here for the rest of the day," I spoke up, not liking being talked about like some helpless little baby. "Have Billy keep Charlie busy. No one else knows Jasper is back. We'll probably have to break that fact to Charlie eventually, especially if the others come back too, but now's not the right time."

Jacob nodded in reluctant agreement and he looked Jasper squarely in the eye. "You hurt her, you burn. Got it, bloodsucker?" Jasper actually smiled at Jacob's threat.

"Bella is safe with me, mutt," he said. Jacob nodded and he started vibrating. A second later, human-Jacob was gone and the russet-colored wolf leapt out from behind my truck and ran off, along with the other four wolves. Jasper promptly swept me up into his arms and ran inside the house. He didn't put me back down until he'd locked the door behind us and activated the iron shields that came down to cover the glass wall.

"Are you okay, Bella?" Jasper asked me once I was back on my feet. He took both of my hands in his and looked down into my eyes. My eyes, of course, betrayed me: I started to cry, and as everything had time to sink in, I started to shake. Victoria and Laurent were out there again. I was being hunted again. Victoria was out for vengeance against me and all the Cullens. Jasper was back. I was back inside the Cullen house. Jacob was a werewolf. Jasper was going to call the rest of the Cullens back. Including Edward? Would he come? Would their friends form Alaska come? Either way, people were dying… and I was right. It all did have to do with me… It was my fault.

"Bella, don't you dare blame yourself for all this," Jasper growled as he felt my answer to his question, and he pulled me back into his arms again. He carried me upstairs, pushing waves of calm, love, and caring into me as he went. It wasn't enough. I was too weak. I hadn't eaten. My head was spinning. Even with our physical contact strengthening his influence on me, it wasn't enough… Too much. My vision swam in and out, and then everything went black.


	7. Hope

♀︎(Bella's POV)

"Wait, Carlisle... I think she's coming out of it… Bella? Bella, can you hear me? Bella, open your eyes." The voice was familiar: Commanding, but kind. I knew I should listen, but I couldn't quite bring myself to open my eyes. My mind was too busy with other things to operate my body. I kept seeing images of Victoria: Her fiery hair, her wild eyes, her jerky movements… She was still hunting me. It was never going to end…

"Yes. Her breathing changed. More than anything, her emotions are sharper. They aren't all blurring together quite as much as before. Each one is becoming a little more distinct… Carlisle, her heart rate just jumped. Something is scaring her. Bella? Bella, listen to me! Open your eyes right now!" Again, I tried. Again, I failed. Whoever was speaking to me shouldn't be near me. It was too dangerous. Victoria would hurt them, and then she would kill me…

"What was that? Carlisle, what did Esme say…? That makes sense… I'll try it. Bella, Victoria is not going to hurt you. Neither will Laurent. We're going to make you safe again, Bella. You're safe. Bella, it's going to be okay. Come back, Bella. Come back to me right now, Bella. Wake up. Open your eyes." I was safe. I was safe? How was I safe? How was anyone I cared about safe? They weren't. And it was my fault…

"That almost worked. What else can I do?" The rich, commanding voice was sounding continually more anxious. "No. Carlisle, I already did that to her once. I can't… If I keep putting her through emotional torture, like that, she's surely going to snap. I've made vampires go mad, Carlisle! She's human! She's so… breakable, and already broken. If I hurt her… Fine. I suppose I have no choice… Bella, if you can hear me, I'm so sorry."

Fear and trust, love and hate, sadness and joy, giddiness and lethargy, calm and anxiety, excitement and wariness, anger and adoration, disgust and lust, restlessness and contentment, annoyance and amusement, anguish and ecstasy… I screamed and my eyes flew open.

"Bella!" Jasper dropped the phone in his hand and pulled me into his lap, cradling me against his chest. Instead of using the physical contact to amplify his influence, he cut off the flood of emotions abruptly. He didn't even send waves of calm into me. He didn't use his power at all. He just held me and murmured a stream of soft apologies. "I'm sorry, Bella. You weren't waking up, and nothing else Carlisle suggested was working. I had to bring you out of it somehow. I'm so sorry. I didn't want to do that to you again. It's cruel. I'm sorry. I'm so glad you're okay. Bella, please say something. Bella?" Jasper shook me gently. My sluggish human mind took a moment to catch up.

"Carlisle?" That was the first word I could manage, and my voice still cracked. "Carlisle told you…? What…?" I was confused, but Jasper laughed. His beautiful, deep voice was dripping with relief.

"I'll explain everything, Bella," He said warmly. "Wait a moment…" Jasper shifted me slightly in his lap and leaned over to pick up the cellphone he'd dropped. "Carlisle? Did you hear all that?" He asked into the phone. "Yes, I think she's alright now. I'll tell her the plan. What? Oh, good point… Alright. I'll see you soon, Carlisle." Jasper snapped the phone shut and looked into my eyes, surely seeing the hundred-and-one questions there.

"I have to feed you first," He said, smiling down at me. "Doctor's orders. I will answer any other questions you have after you eat something." Somehow, the familiar human joke woke me up enough to roll my eyes.

"Fine," I grumbled. "What kind of pet food do you still have in this place?" Jasper laughed as he helped me up.

"Unfortunately, not much. It's been months, after all, so there isn't much fresh food left."

"I'm not picky," I replied, earning another chuckle from Jasper.

Once in the kitchen, I found some frozen waffles in the freezer and I plugged in the never-used toaster to thaw them. Jasper continued to lighten my mood, even without the use of his power, when he made a face at my food choice.

"I know, I know," I grumbled. "It's no mountain lion or irritable grizzly."

"Not by a long shot," Jasper chuckled, still looking at the pitiful excuse for human food like it was poisonous.

"Bella, what happened?" Jasper asked when he felt the sudden shift in my emotions. I was a little surprised when he didn't send out a wave of calm to me. "What's wrong now?" He still didn't use his power, but he took a couple steps closer to me. I closed my eyes and took a moment to calm myself before I answered him.

"Sorry, that was stupid of me," I started to explain. "Making hunting jokes like that… It just made me think of Edward… and Emmett." I couldn't stop the fleeting involuntary smile that came to my lips with that afterthought. Trying to picture Emmett fighting with a bear was still funny to me. Letting myself think of any of the Cullens apart from Jasper, though… I wasn't entirely sure if the flashes of happiness were worth the horrible ache that followed close behind. Jasper groaned.

"My stupid, pigheaded brother," he half-growled. "Why did he have to do this to you? That ache in your chest, the knot in your stomach, that hole inside you that makes me worry your fragile body is going to collapse in on itself… Feeling it is enough to drive me out of my mind, and you've been felling it for months…" Oops. I was hurting Jasper again. I struggled to rein in my emotions, but it was an uphill battle.

"Jasper, can you help me?" I asked him, knowing he'd know what I meant. "I don't want to keep hurting you, and I really need to be able to focus right now." Surprise flickered across Jasper's face, but he complied with my request and sent gentle waves of calm into me until I could collect myself. I breathed a sigh of relief and Jasper chuckled in amazement.

"I can't believe you still want me to affect you," he said incredulously. "After what I've done to you twice now, you should be afraid of my influence."

"Well, I'm not," I shrugged dismissively. "You did what you had to do to help me, Jasper. I can't fault you for that." Jasper still looked incredulous, but he let the matter drop and smiled warmly at me. My heart fluttered. Edward never would have let me win a 'you should be afraid of me' argument so easily! He would have stubbornly argued his side until he realized I wasn't giving up, at which point he would have dazzled me to make me forget about it. Jasper also dazzled me with that smile, of course, but it wasn't a tactic for him. It was just… beautiful.

Once I was sure I wasn't going to fall to pieces, I took my waffles into the dining room and sat down. Jasper followed me and sat down in the chair next to me. I took a bite of my food, buying a little more time, and I looked out the back windows. It was still light outside, but it was difficult to judge the time of day beyond that. "How long was I out?" I kept my first question simple. "What time is it?"

"It's noon, give or take a few minutes," Jasper answered promptly. "You were out for just under two hours."

"Two hours?" I repeated. "No wonder Carlisle was worried about me. Sorry, Jasper."

"You have nothing to apologize for," he replied. "Carlisle told me it was your mind's way of protecting itself. That was a lot for you to take in, in a very short time… I'm the one who owes you an apology, Bella. We should never have let Victoria go free. Even Laurent…" Jasper's voice was lost to a furious growl. "Irina wasn't too pleased to hear about his involvement."

"Irina?" I asked attentively. "You told your friends in Denali what happened?" Jasper gave me a bracing look and the air got a little harder to breathe. This couldn't be good. Jasper reached out and took my hand.

"Easy, Bella," he soothed. "It's going to be okay, but… As I told the wolves I would, I asked everyone to come back down here, including the Denalis: Eleazar, Carmen, Tanya, Kate, Irina, and the rest of our family. Edward wasn't around when I called. Alice, Carlisle, Esme, and Rosalie are going to see if they can find him. They will come down in three days, whether they're successful in their search or not. Emmett is going to bring our friends down here tomorrow."

"When the wolves were here," I began, "you said Laurent and Irina got 'close'. Laurent is Irina's mate?" Jasper's brow wrinkled in disgust, but he nodded. His expression then turned to one of concern, in response to the fear and anxiety that shot through me. "She wouldn't…" I stammered nervously, "I mean, would she…? If something happens with Laurent, if he gets hurt, will she be angry with the wolves? Or me?" My voice cracked on that last word and I realized I was shaking slightly. I didn't even see Jasper move, but I was suddenly sitting in his lap. He hugged me to his chest and stroked my hair soothingly.

"Bella, Irina would never hurt you," He said. "No one will hurt you, Bella. You're going to be okay. Yes, Laurent is Irina's mate, but we're her family. We're the closest thing they have to family, anyway. She won't hurt you, and we won't let her harm the wolves. Irina and the others are all coming down here because they want to help. Bella, do you understand that? We all want to help you. Even Rosalie." That surprised me.

"Rosalie?" I prodded feebly.

"I've been updating Alice on your condition since I came down here, remember?" Jasper asked me. I nodded into his chest, not looking up to meet his eyes. "She filled everyone else in. As I expected, Rosalie is less-than-happy with Edward right now."

"Oh." A pitiful answer, but the best one I could manage. Jasper just held me in his arms until I was able to form another coherent thought. "Should I call Jacob and tell him when everyone is coming?" I asked. "So he can warn the other wolves?" I felt Jasper tense slightly at the new subject, but he loosed a resigned sigh and rested his chin lightly on the top of my head.

"That's probably a good idea," he conceded. "I can't honestly say I'm thrilled with the idea of working with that pack, but there's really no avoiding it, and they are your friends." Jasper shifted under me and he pulled his cellphone out of his pocket. He offered it to me readily, but I had to take a steadying breath before accepting it. He rubbed soothing circles into my back as I dialed the Blacks' home number. I wasn't prepared to hear Charlie's voice answer.

"Hello?" He asked lightly. It almost sounded like he'd just been laughing. I froze. Jasper quickly grabbed the phone from my hand.

"Hey, is Jacob there?" I jumped slightly at the sound of Jasper's voice. It wasn't his voice. His voice wasn't rich and velvety smooth as he spoke, but sharp and a little jarring. I realized he was trying to sound like one of the boys from the reservation, one of Jacob's friends. He was doing a pretty good job of it too. He held the phone back to my ear fast enough that I heard Charlie's completely unsuspecting reply.

"Yeah, hold on. Jake?" He called. There was some noise in the background, and then I heard Jacob's voice. He sounded tired.

"Yeah?" He half-groaned.

"Jake, it's Bella," I said, "but don't say my name. Charlie doesn't know it's me. Jasper spoke to him."

"Be…! I mean… Crap, hang on a sec," he whispered that last part. There was some more noise in the background. Jacob didn't speak again for almost a full minute.

"Sorry, Bella," he said. "I was just telling my dad to get Charlie out of hearing range. Our one phone doesn't move, you know. Are you okay? What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong, Jake," I said, trying to sound calm and confident. "Not really. I just thought the pack would want to know when the rest of the Cullens are coming?" Jacob murmured something that sounded vaguely like an unintelligible stream of expletives.

"Yeah," he grumbled coolly. "Shoot." I quickly relayed Jasper's explanation to Jacob, leaving out the more personal details.

"Shit," Jacob growled one clear expletive. It was jarring, coming from him. "Eleven leeches? Twelve, if Edward comes back?" Even Edward's name sounded like a swearword.

"Stop calling them that!" I was shooting for scolding, but my voice didn't come out quite strong enough.

"Whatever, Bella," Jacob grumbled petulantly. "I need to phase to pass all that on to the others. You sure you're okay over there?"

"I'm fine, Jacob," my voice came stronger that time. Jacob's bad mood was contagious, even through the phone. "I am absolutely fine with Jasper. Just tell the rest of the pack not to attack my… the others, when they come, okay?" Jacob grumbled something unintelligible again, and he hung up without another word. I snapped Jasper's cellphone shut with a frustrated sigh.

"Some friend you have there," Jasper's voice was thick with sarcasm as he took his phone back and pocketed it.

"That wasn't my friend," I sighed again. "Jacob was always kind and light-hearted, if a bit naïve. He's changed."

"Into a wolf," Jasper agreed, but the biting tone of his voice was gone. I laughed half-heartedly. I still had yet to look Jasper in the eye since he pulled me into his lap. He turned me in his lap and took my face in both of his hands, lifting gently until I finally met his gaze.

"You started to tell Jacob to warn the wolves not to attack your family, but you wouldn't say the word," he said softly, tenderly. "Do you still believe we don't love you that way?"

"I'm not sure," I answered honestly, my voice a breath above a whisper. "I… I'm not worth it. I mean, think about it: It really wasn't all that long ago that you had to save me from James. You've been back here for a week, and now you're trying to protect me from Laurent and Victoria. And that's just vampires! You already had to save me from those men in Port Angeles! Edward did, too! He also saved me from being killed by that van! Maybe it's about time we all just accepted that I'm supposed to die! Maybe you should all stop trying to save me."

"No, Bella," Jasper growled. I opened my mouth to argue, but his finger on my mouth stopped me. I felt my heart skip a beat at the touch, and I briefly forgot what I was trying to say. "Stop," Jasper commanded firmly, his cool finger still on my burning lips. I found myself struggling not to tremble.

"I love you, Bella." My heart fluttered at the phrase, but flopped at the follow-up. "Our whole family loves you." Leave it to the stupid human to get all worked up for no reason. "I'm sure our friends will love you too. Just wait until you meet them tomorrow. We are going to save you, Bella. We won't let you die." My heart skipped another beat, but I was quick to mentally scold myself. That's not what he meant! Stupid human, stupid lamb!

"Bella!" I jumped at the change in Jasper's voice. No longer soft and reassuring, it became exasperated and commanding: "Stop doing this to yourself! You are worth it. Our whole family does love you, and… If Edward, somehow, doesn't love you anymore… he's an idiot." I took a moment to process that while Jasper waited somewhat patiently. I tried to process what his words meant, but my mind was refusing to let me hope. Jasper removed his finger from my lips, to let me speak, but that didn't help at all. I almost whimpered at the loss of contact.

"Bella," Jasper whispered vehemently, tenderly reaching back up to lightly brush the corner of my mouth with his cool thumb. "I can feel what you're feeling. I was hesitant to bring it up, afraid you might just be clinging to me because I'm all you have here right now. Alice told me she and I would both find someone else, though. I didn't expect it to be you. I doubt even Alice expected it, but… I think that might be the case. I understand if it's too fast for you, but I think… I am falling in love with you."

Jasper paused again, waiting for me to speak, but all I could manage was a soft whimper. The thumb he'd been holding to my mouth ghosted along my cheekbone until his whole hand cupped my cheek. His other hand tentatively stroked my right arm, gliding down until his fingertips touched my bite scar. His fingers traced the crescent shape while his eyes held mine.

"She loved me for the dangers I had passed," he quoted with breathtaking feeling, "and I loved her that she did pity them."

"Othello," I whispered. Jasper nodded.

"Your scent was on the book last night," he said. "It's the first time you've so much as touched any of your books in a while. I was curious. I didn't particularly like that you were only reading the death scene… Please don't tell me your heart can't be saved. I want to save it. I want to love you."

"By 'saving' my heart, you mean…"

"Bella, please don't. That's not what I'm talking about. If you still want to be changed…"

"Don't," I whimpered, pulling back a little from Jasper's hand. His hand on my face dropped, but he still held my scarred hand. "Please don't promise me anything. I don't… I can't let myself…"

"Hope?" Jasper asked softly. I nodded feebly. "I know what that feels like, Bella," he said, "and not just because I can feel what you're feeling now. You remember my story, don't you?" I nodded again. "I was afraid to hope too, Bella. Alice helped me. She helped me learn to hope again. Now it's my turn to help you."

Jasper reached up and stroked my cheek again. He brushed some of my hair away from my face, and then his fingers glided down my jaw. His hand stopped when his thumb grazed my lips, and I gasped at the jolt of electricity that shot through me. "I felt that too, Bella," he said, smiling lovingly at me. His fingers traced my mouth teasingly, lightly caressing the cupid's bow of my upper lip and applying a little more pressure when he reached the center of my bottom lip, parting my lips ever-so-slightly.

"May I kiss you, Bella?" He asked me. I was surprised to actually hear his voice crack with emotion. Speech was completely beyond me, so I forced myself to nod once. Edward had been so afraid the first time, but Jasper seemed okay. He didn't seem worried about his control at all. Nonetheless, I held perfectly still as he leaned in. He gently cupped my head in both his hands, and I gasped when he kissed my forehead first. His icy lips were there for less than a second. My eyes fell closed and he took full advantage, pressing his marble-smooth lips to my eyelids in feather-light kisses.

"Jasper," I whimpered, and that was all it took.

Jasper's lips claimed mine in a gentle, loving kiss. I swear, fireworks went off in my eyes, and my heart pounded in time with each explosion. My hands moved of their own accord and my fingers were suddenly tangled in Jasper's hair. For a moment, I froze, waiting for him to stiffen and push me away. He did the opposite. He deepened the kiss, his arms moving down to capture my waist and pull me tighter against him. He held me tighter than Edward ever had, but he didn't hurt me. I started to feel a little light-headed and Jasper only broke the kiss to let me breathe. The look he gave me made me blush ten shades of red.

"That was…" I began, but my struggle to form a coherent sentence was cut short. Jasper's phone buzzed and I jumped, making him laugh. Just that easily, my mind recovered.

"Alice?" I asked, "Would she have seen that?" Jasper frowned slightly.

"I'm not sure," he said as he pulled the phone out of his pocket. He shook his head. "I don't recognize the number." He flipped the phone open and raised it to his ear. "Hello? Jacob?" If my heart skipped any more beats it was going to forget how to work, altogether. "Oh. Thank you." At least Jasper attempted to be civil. "I'll take care of it."

"What was that about?" I asked when he snapped the phone shut.

"Your father is on his way home," he answered. I nodded, understanding.

"I need to get back."


	8. Power Play

♀︎(Bella's POV)

Jasper let me drive back home. He didn't even push to ride with me. He did tell me he was going to run ahead of me, just to be sure the way was safe. That was acceptable enough. Protecting me while giving me some privacy. I was grateful. Though I was more able to focus, my mind was still reeling from that kiss. I still didn't really know what to make of it. It made me feel so good, so loved. The hole in my chest wasn't quite so painful. It was still there, but the once ragged edges had smoothed out and no longer festered and burned. The hole was healing, but it wasn't gone. I still loved Edward… didn't I?

Yes. The answer became clear to me as I thought of what excuse I would give Charlie for leaving the party in La Push: Sam Uley. Seeing him reminded me of the night he found me in the woods, where Edward left me. The second I let that memory fill my mind, the familiar ache in my chest throbbed. I still missed Edward. I still loved him, but… Did I also love Jasper? I thought of all he'd done for me in just these past few days. I thought of his terrible past, his newfound control, the way he treated me more like an equal than Edward ever had, the way he kissed me, and I couldn't deny the answer: Yes.

This was seriously screwed up.

By the time my decrepit truck got me home, I'd rehearsed what I was going to say to Charlie several times over. I only hoped Jasper was ready to play along. "Jasper?" I called out to him softly, knowing he would be close enough to hear me. Sure enough, Jasper was sitting in the passenger seat of my truck before I could blink. "Come in with me," I told him before he could start asking questions. "I have an idea. Just play along, okay? And keep Charlie calm, please. He's not going to like this."

"Anything you want, Bella," Jasper reassured me, taking my hand and giving it a light squeeze. My heart fluttered at the touch and he smiled at me. "I'm with you," he promised. I couldn't help but smile back.

"Hey, Bells. Where've you been?" Charlie greeted me casually enough when I opened the door. I didn't respond right away, leading Jasper into my living room where Charlie was watching TV. Charlie's eyes widened when he saw Jasper. He didn't seem to recognize Jasper. He was just shocked that I'd brought someone over, and a male someone no less.

"Sorry, Dad," I began. "I tried to call you a little while ago, but Jacob said you already left." Charlie wasn't even looking at me. "Dad, this is Jasper Hale. He's one of the Cullens, but I don't think you ever really met…"

"One of the Cullens?" Charlie repeated, sounding somewhere between shocked and furious. Jasper was quick to intervene. I felt a strong wave of calm wash throughout the room and he took a step forward.

"It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Chief Swan," he said, extending his hand to Charlie. "Of course, I do wish the circumstances were better."

"Yeah, I bet you do," Charlie grumbled. He shook Jasper's hand, but the exchange was curt and cool in a way that had nothing to do with the temperature of Jasper's skin.

"Dad, would you please let me explain before you contemplate reaching for your gun?" I pleaded. Charlie rolled his eyes slightly, but he turned to me expectantly. I took a deep breath and dove into my monologue.

"I'm sorry I ran out on the party without talking to you, but it was harder for me to be there than I expected. When I ran into Sam Uley, it just reminded me of that night in the woods…" I paused just long enough to check Charlie's reaction. He frowned sadly and nodded once. I plowed on before my rehearsed speech could be interrupted. "So I left, but I didn't really know where to go. I didn't want to just go home, so… I thought I would drive up to the Cullens' house for a minute. I thought it might help me clear my head a bit, but… I expected it to be empty."

"So, you had no idea they were back?" Charlie interjected skeptically.

"He, dad," I corrected. "No. I had no idea he, Jasper, was back here. When I got up there, though… He could tell I was upset, and he asked me if I wanted to talk about it. That's all we've been doing this whole time. Talking. Catching up."

"Are you living in that house alone?" Charlie turned his suspicious gaze on Jasper. I jumped on that one as fast as I could.

"Easy, Dad. He's nineteen," I began. Jasper remained silent. Even if Charlie was somehow not seeing right through me, Jasper could tell I was struggling to keep to a mental script. "He, Rosalie, and Emmett graduated last year. Jasper didn't enroll in college right away, because he was planning to wait one more year and start with Alice. He and Alice recently broke up, though…"

"Broke up?" Charlie interrupted again. "You mean…?"

"Yes, Dad," I tried to interject just a little exasperation into my voice. "Alice was with Jasper and Emmett and Rosalie are together. You know that. Alice talked to you about it, before."

"I guess she did," Charlie grumbled.

"It wasn't a rough break-up, Sir," Jasper suddenly jumped in. I guessed he was reacting to something he felt from Charlie. "It ended on good terms, but… I just thought I would give her a little more space. I decided I wanted to move back down here for a while, and my parents consented. I only arrived a few days ago." Charlie looked at me for confirmation of Jasper's words, and all I could do was nod mutely. My mental script had been put through a shredder. I had no clue what to say. Thankfully, Jasper was ready to take over.

"Sir?" He spoke softly at first, reclaiming Charlie's attention. I looked up at him and saw a mask of perfect contrition on his beautiful face. "We had no idea what Edward was going to say to Bella when we left. The rest of my family and I… We never would have knowingly left Bella alone in the woods like that. I can't believe my brother did such a thing. Yes, we all had to leave quickly, but Edward was cruel in how he handled the situation. He could have tried to maintain his relationship with Bella, in spite of our departure. That was what Alice, Emmett, and I recommended. I am so very sorry for the pain our leaving caused. Again, I implore you to believe we had no knowledge of it. I'm sure any other member of my family would attest to that."

Charlie seemed to be at a loss for words. It probably didn't help that the air was thick with the sincere emotions Jasper was projecting. It was almost making me dizzy. After a moment, the flow of emotions let up slightly and Charlie collected himself enough to resume his interrogation. Jasper's influence still lingered, though, and Charlie's tone of voice was much softer.

"So... How long will you be living here, alone, Jasper?"

"Not long, Sir," Jasper responded promptly. "Not alone, I mean. The job Carlisle took isn't working out so well, after all. He, Esme, and Alice are going to move back down here within the week. I'm not sure what Edward will do. He tested out of high school early, you see, and he moved out a month or so ago. We haven't heard much from him."

"Even ditched his own family, huh?" Charlie probably didn't mean for that comment to be audible. His lips barely moved, but I still heard him, and that meant Jasper heard him very clearly. We both pretended otherwise.

"I think Emmett and Rosalie are going to at least drop by," Jasper continued. "Like Bella, they're on winter break for a few more days, and Emmett has been missing Bella. I'm sure he'll want to come see her… If that's acceptable, Sir?"

I didn't even have to look at Jasper. I didn't have to see the look of staggered awe on Charlie's face. Just the slight change in Jasper's voice told me what was happening. The sound made my knees weak. Jasper was dazzling Charlie.

"Erm… Yeah, I guess that's okay… Alright, Jasper, I'll believe you, but…" And I thought I was a dazzling push-over. Charlie didn't stand a chance.

"But what, Sir?" Jasper asked in a bone-melting, perfectly innocent voice. It was a kill-strike. My human ears couldn't even decipher Charlie's garbled response. I think Edward's name was mentioned, but that was all I could pick out.

"I'll see to it, personally, Chief Swan," Jasper answered whatever question I missed. "You have my word." I was so absorbed in what was happening between Jasper and Charlie, I didn't even notice Jasper was reaching for me until his hand on my back made me jump. That was when the shot of lethargy hit.

"Bella, you're dead on your feet," Jasper laughed softly when I suddenly fell back into him. He caught me and held me up, but the increased physical contact only made the lethargy worse. "I really should go now. You need to rest. You've had a rough day."

"Jasper, it's not even two o'clock!" I argued automatically, instinctively struggling against his influence. "And I… I drove you here! I have to take you back to your place!"

"Not a chance, Bella," Jasper chuckled, again. "You're much too tired to drive." I literally had to bite my tongue to keep from shouting back 'thanks to you!' Jasper seemed to sense that. The lethargy increased.

"Stop that!" I hissed as quietly as I could.

"I can walk, Bella," Jasper continued, ignoring my protests. "I'll be fine."

"I can give you a ride, Jasper," Charlie offered. I froze. My mind was finally catching up with my body, and I realized this was Jasper's goal.

"I appreciate the offer, Chief Swan, but I don't want to impose," Jasper began. "I don't mind walking back."

"Nonsense, Jasper," Charlie laughed a little too freely. I didn't feel anything but lethargy and calm pouring out of Jasper, but he was clearly affecting Charlie too, and in a very different way. Was that really possible? "It's no trouble at all," Charlie continued brightly. "You go ahead and take a nap, kiddo," he said to me. "You really do look tired." Jasper reined in the force of his power a little and he nudged me lightly. I took the hint.

"Alright," I yawned. I turned to face Jasper directly. "Talk to you later?" Even I wasn't sure if I was actually asking him to stay or just keeping to our little ruse. He smiled down at me, clearly amused.

"Of course," he said, and he pulled me into a brief hug, still playing to Charlie. "It's been a pleasure seeing you again, Bella. I truly hope my family and I can fix this mess we've left you in. We've missed you." If I wasn't so ridiculously tired, I probably would have melted on the spot. As it was, I forced a smile and trudged upstairs without another word, stumbling twice along the way. I flopped down on my bed and I was asleep before I even heard the cruiser pull out of the driveway.

I walked toward the towering pillar of smoke, pulled to it by some invisible force. My heart was pounding furiously and there was a knot in my stomach the size and weight of a cannon. I tried to move faster. I tried to run, but it felt like I was running in soft sand. I was so human. I was so weak… and I couldn't shake the feeling that someone I loved was going to die because of it.

When I reached the pillar of smoke, I saw it was coming from a massive bonfire in the bottom of an enormous, deep pit. My stomach turned sickeningly when I noticed the dismembered arms and legs of some unknown vampires littering the floor around the fire, trying to squirm away from the heat of their own volition. More important than that were the still intact vampires clinging to the edge of the pit: Jasper, Alice, Esme, Carlisle, Rosalie, Emmett… and Edward.

Why weren't they pulling themselves up?! Why were they all looking at me?! I couldn't understand. "Bella!" Jasper called out to me. "Bella, you have to help us! Please!"

"Bella, no!" Edward called out to me then. "Bella, stay away! Go away! Forget about us!"

"Bella, don't listen to him!" Alice screamed. "We need you! Please, Bella!" I didn't know what to do. I didn't know what I could do. My heart was trying to beat its way right out of my chest and tears were streaming down my cheeks, warmed by my proximity to the fire.

"Bella!" Jasper called out to me again. I looked at him, but his mouth wasn't moving. "Bella!" His voice was urgent but soft. His mouth still didn't move. I suddenly felt cold, though the fire was still raging. I started to shake. "Bella, wake up! It's just a dream, Bella. Wake up!"

I wasn't shaking. Jasper was shaking me. I was cooling off because he was sitting next to me on my bed. My bed. My house. My room. It was just a dream. My heart was still pounding furiously. I automatically looked at Jasper's eyes. It was twilight outside, and there was still enough light in the room for me to see how black his eyes were. He really had improved his control. "Bella, are you alright?" He asked softly, probably keeping his voice down for Charlie's sake. His brow was furrowed with concern.

"Yeah, fine." I mumbled, pushing myself up into a sitting position. Jasper didn't move or speak, waiting for me to collect myself and fully awake. I couldn't tell if he was helping me calm down or not, but I was able to quickly shove that dream into the back of my mind and focus on him. "What was that all about?" I grumbled. I realized too late that I probably sounded really stupid, not even referencing what I was talking about. Jasper understood of course, but I still couldn't stop blush that flashed through me. Jasper just smiled.

"Yes, I am sorry about that, but it was necessary," he began. "It wasn't really your fault. Somehow, you've become a slightly better liar since we left. Your father was still very uncomfortable, and I wanted to do something more than merely affect him. My power does wear off, after all. I thought we should embed a seed of trust in his mind too, so I manipulated the situation so that I could be alone with him. By driving me back up to my house, Charlie not only saw our home with his own eyes, but being able to speak to me without worrying about your reaction gave him the illusion of some control."

"I don't really like the sound of that," I said slowly. "What exactly did you two talk about?" Jasper frowned at me, but he was still quick to answer.

"Edward, mainly. It was what I expected. That's why I wanted you to allow it. Your father was able to vent some of the feelings I could feel him struggling to hold in around you. He needed that release, but you didn't need the pain. I'm sorry if I was a little too forceful, but do you understand my reasoning, Bella?" I was almost lost in the swirling onyx pools that were Jasper's eyes. He wasn't quite dazzling me, but he was pleading with me to understand. I nodded and he relaxed a little. Of course I understood. Something else was bothering me.

"When you were making me sleepy, you simultaneously made Charlie… enthusiastic? I didn't know you could do that." Jasper suddenly looked uncomfortable.

"Neither did I," he said. For a moment, I froze.

"What are you saying?" I finally asked once I collected myself. "You've never done that before? Not during that century of fighting, or the decades with Alice…?"

"Never," Jasper said, shaking his head. He had to be telling the truth. He looked very troubled by what we were discussing. "I can sense emotions from multiple people at once, but I've never been able to project completely different emotions to completely different targets like that."

"Can you do it again?" I whispered. Jasper shook his head.

"I tried a few minutes ago. You were asleep and your father was in close enough proximity… I experimented with a few different, subtle emotions, but I wasn't able to split my influence again. I could only affect both of you with the same emotion at the same time… Bella?" I almost jumped when Jasper snapped out of his thoughtful daze and addressed me directly.

"Yes?" I whispered warily.

"When I mentioned the Volturi before, I was surprised that you seemed to already know about them, but I didn't press the subject. I'm curious, now. What do you know about them?" I was briefly thrown by the subject change, but I tried to answer somewhat coherently.

"They were briefly mentioned when Edward told me Carlisle's story," I began. "Those three in the painting?" Jasper nodded.

"The three elders. Aro, Caius, and Marcus," he offered.

"Right," I nodded. "Edward mentioned them again, shortly before you all left. We were watching Romeo and Juliet, and at some point the subject of what he would have done if James had succeeded in killing me came up. He said…" My throat was suddenly tight. This was going to be difficult. I reached out and took Jasper's hand before he could reach for me himself. He instantly sent waves of ease through our joined hands. I took a deep breath and continued. "He said suicide is much easier for humans than vampires, but that would have been his plan… suicide. I told him that was absolutely ridiculous, but… Anyway, he said these Volturi are kind of like the vampire equivalent of a royal family, and that you don't want to upset them. Your story made me understand that even more, of course..." I gave up on trying to explain more than that. It was too difficult to think about, and the look on Jasper's face told me he understood.

"No wonder you threw out Romeo and Juliet," Jasper almost growled, shaking his head in apparent disbelief.

"I used to love it," I whispered. "Now I hate it. It all just strikes a little too close to home… I can't let myself think about it."

“Then don't." He said, squeezing my hand lightly. I was struggling not to cry and he could surely feel it. "Please. I'm sorry I brought that into your mind at all. I only mentioned the Volturi, because…" Jasper hesitated for a moment, and that frightened me. "Don't," he said again. He sighed and looked me straight in the eye. "You don't need to be afraid, but there's something you should know about Eleazar."

"One of your friends from Denali?" I asked. "The ones coming tomorrow?" Jasper nodded.

"He used to be one of the Volturi guard," He said. "He left them when he found Carmen, and they found Tanya, Kate, and Irina soon after that. One thing you don't seem to know about the Volturi, Bella, is that many of them are extremely gifted and talented. Among them is a tracker named Demitri, for instance. James was nothing compared to him. Then, there are Jane and Alec. They truly are brother and sister, twins. Jane can make even a vampire collapse in excruciating pain, just using her mind. Then there's Alec: He can cut of the senses. It's like he and Jane are opposites in their gifts. Jane makes you feel the worst pain imaginable and Alec makes you feel absolutely nothing. Of the elders, Marcus can sense relationships and Aro's gift is similar to Edward's, with one key difference: Edward can hear the present thought's of everyone within about one-hundred yards of him. Aro can only hear the thoughts of one person at a time, and he needs physical contact, but unlike Edward, Aro can hear every thought you've ever had within a matter of minutes."

"Wait a minute," I said, holding up my free hand. Hearing all this was only making me nervous, but my curiosity was also piqued. "If Aro's gift is like Edward's, would I be immune to his power too?" Jasper surprised me by smiling faintly.

"That's exactly where I'm going with this, Bella," he said. "Eleazar is gifted, too. He can sense the gifts of other vampires, and even some humans. It's very rare, you see, for a dormant power to show itself in a human. Typically, you find cases like mine. As a human, I found it easy to manipulate the feelings of those around me, but it was nothing like what I can do now. It wasn't so much a literal power, but a certain charisma I had. I've been thinking, though… Finding you was a disturbing shock to us in more ways than one. The way your blood tempted Edward was bad enough, but we were also afraid of the fact that you were immune to one of our powers. We'd never heard of such a thing, much less encountered it ourselves…" Jasper trialed off momentarily, probably feeling the laughter coming.

"What?!" I laughed incredulously. "You were afraid of me?! All of you?!" Jasper sent a wave of calm out to subdue my laughter before he answered.

"Yes, Bella. You have no idea how much. Alice was immensely relieved when she started having visions of you, and I subtly tested my power on you a few times in passing at school… Still, I've been giving it some thought and I have a theory: Maybe your immunity to Edward's gift is your gift. If that's true, it probably applies to more gifts than just Edward's. Alice can still see you, and I can still affect you, but both of our powers operate outside of our target's mind. My gift truly does affect the body physically, altering emotions by manipulating chemical and hormonal reactions within the body. Alice's gift works even farther outside the body. She sees possible future events. Most vampiric gifts work mentally, inside the mind. Edward and Aro hear your thoughts, and Alec and Jane's powers are actually illusions. Jane makes you think you're in unbearable pain, but your body isn't harmed by her power at all. When Alec cuts off the senses of others, he affects the receptors in the brain, not the nerve endings in the body."

"So…" I said, slowly catching on. "Aro, Jane, Alec… You think I might be immune to them too?" Jasper nodded.

"Demitri too, Bella," he said, "and several others if my theory is correct. Like I said, most vampiric gifts only work mentally. I'm hoping Eleazar will be able to shed some more light on the issue. If I'm right… You may have a very powerful latent gift, Bella, one that would make even the Volturi envious." I shuddered at the thought. I couldn't help it. Jasper automatically sent another wave of ease and reassurance through our still joined hands. I shook my head incredulously.

"I still can't wrap my head around that," I murmured softly. "The idea of me making vampires afraid or envious… It's absurd." Jasper laughed outright. I looked up at him and his wide smile turned into a mischievous smirk.

"Bella," he spoke in a seductive purr that made my bones melt. I gaped at him helplessly as he scooted a little closer to me. "There is nothing 'absurd' about it. You have to be the bravest human I've ever met. The love you give to others is unconditional, whether they're human, werewolf, or vampire. You protect those you love with everything you have in you, even when the odds are against you. You're incredibly observant and clever…" Jasper was very close to me. I could feel his cool breath fanning across my cheek as he leaned in still closer. I was struggling to remember how to breathe. "You're kind and passionate. You're beautiful…" I felt his lips barely graze the side of my neck and my head spun. "Your scent is absolutely maddening…" My heart was pounding embarrassingly, and it skipped a beat when Jasper brought his lips to my ear and whispered, "Woman, you scare the hell out of me."

Woman? Did he just call me a woman? My heart somehow managed to pound even harder in my chest. Edward never referred to me as a 'woman'. To him, I was always a 'girl' or even a 'child'. Occasionally he referred to me as a 'lady', but never a 'woman'. I loved the sound of the word, especially in Jasper's molten silk voice.

I gasped for breath I'd been neglecting to take and I laid a hand on Jasper's stone chest, pushing him back a little. My strength was futile against him of course, but he relented to it and eased back until his face was a foot away from mine. His eyes were very dark, so I was careful to move slowly. I rose up on my knees and gave him a bracing look before leaning in. His body didn't go rigid when our lips touched, a response I'd learned to expect from Edward, but kissing him still felt a little awkward. A quick peck was all I could manage before my self-consciousness got the better of me and I pulled back. Jasper sent out a gentle wave of ease, to quell my discomfort, but that wasn't what I wanted.

"Let me feel what you're feeling, Jasper," I tried and failed to imitate his seductive purr. My voice cracked and my words sounded faintly garbled. I felt myself blush, but I made myself continue. "Right now. Let me feel what I'm making you feel. Please?" I tentatively reached up and touched his cool cheek with my heated hand and I felt the flow begin. First, there was a faint flicker of fear, proof of the truth in his earlier words. I smiled involuntarily and he smiled back, his eyes never leaving mine. Those swirling pools of onyx became continually more molten as he let more emotions loose: Protectiveness, awe, longing, love, and lust. Before I knew it, I was leaning in again, this time with no hesitation.

I couldn't even close the whole distance between us before Jasper's patience crumbled. He met me halfway, claiming my lips with his in a heated kiss that wonderfully contrasted the cool marble of his own mouth. His kiss was fiery and aggressive, putting Edward's chaste kisses to shame. I felt my entire body melting and Jasper was no help. He wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me forward as he leaned back, pulling me on top of him as he stretched out across my bed. For a moment, I panicked: What would Charlie do if he saw or heard us?! All my qualms were lost when I felt Jasper's cold tongue touch my lips, requesting entrance. I was quick to cave.

Jasper had officially crossed one of Edward's old boundaries. This was entirely new territory for me, and I was absolutely lost in it. Jasper looked like a Greek god, and his smell was intoxicating, but his taste! His tongue explored my mouth thoroughly, marking the uncharted territory with his sweet, addictive taste. A small part of me realized I must be tasting his venom, but the larger part of me really didn't care.

I started to run out of breath and Jasper flipped us over at vampire speed, so he was on top. He held the majority of his weight off of me and his mouth left mine, allowing me to gasp for breath. I was surprised by how hard he was also breathing, but he was quick to prove he didn't really need the air. He lightly kissed my jaw, my neck, and my collar bone. My heart had to sound like a war drum to his ears, but I just couldn't find it in me to be embarrassed. I could still feel what he was feeling: The longing, the love, the lust… the irritation?

"What's wrong?" I scarcely managed to gasp. Jasper growled softly and rolled off me so we were laying side-by-side. His breathing was almost as labored as mine.

"Nothing, really," he said. "Just an inconvenient interruption. Charlie ordered pizza for dinner while you were asleep. I hear the delivery car coming. You really should go downstairs and eat. You've barely eaten today, and seeing you in better spirits will keep your father from worrying." I almost growled myself. Stupid human needs.

"I guess so," I sighed. Jasper chuckled softly and stood up, pulling me off the bed with him in one fluid motion.

"I need to eat too," he said. "I'll go hunt, and then I need to call Emmett."

"When are they coming tomorrow?" I asked, gradually settling back into reality.

"They already left," Jasper told me, giving my shoulder a comforting squeeze when he felt my anxiety bubbling up. "They're driving down here. Rosalie lent her convertible to Tanya, Kate, and Irina. Carmen, Eleazar, and Emmett are coming in Emmett's Jeep. They should be here by midnight tonight."

"Vampire driving," I grumbled, rolling my eyes. "Great."

"They're going to love you, Bella," Jasper reassured me, cupping my cheek in one of his cool hands. "You'll see. We're going to make this right, Bella. You're going to be okay." I jumped slightly when I heard the doorbell and Jasper laughed.

"I guess I should get down there," I whispered, suddenly more worried of being overheard by the humans downstairs.

"Yes, you should," Jasper agreed. He walked toward my window before looking back at me once more. An impish glint came to his eyes as he looked at me and he smiled when I blushed in response. "Just take a 'human moment' in the bathroom on your way down," he suggested right before leaping out my window. The too innocent tone of his voice had me running to the bathroom. I looked at myself in the mirror and watched as I blushed red as a traffic light. Charlie definitely couldn't see me looking so flushed and rumpled.


	9. Endangered Species

♀︎(Bella's POV)

"Bella, you don't understand. It's dangerous."

"I'm perfectly aware of the dangers! I'm not a child!"

"Then stop acting like one! No… I'm sorry. I didn't mean that… but, Bella, you are acting reckless. You don't know what you're getting yourself into."

"Yes I do! They're your friends and family, Edward! Why don't you trust them?! Why don't you trust me?!"

"Stay away from them, Bella. The wolves, too."

"No!"

I looked around for Jasper, Jacob, anyone, but I was alone with Edward in the woods and it was getting dark.

"Where are they, Edward?! Take me back to them!"

"No, Bella."

I stared into Edward's dark eyes in disbelief. Why was he doing this? Whatever his motive, there would be no reasoning with him. His dark eyes were hard as flint. If I was going to see the others again, I would have to find them myself. I started to walk away from Edward, but he grabbed my arm.

"No, Bella," he said again.

"Let me go, Edward," I demanded. I struggled against his grip on my arm, but it was useless. "Let go," I said in the strongest voice I could muster. Edward's grip didn't relent.

"You're mine."

"I… What?" I stared right into Edward's eyes, shocked by his words. Bad idea. I couldn't look away. He was dazzling me.

"Don't you see, Bella? This is for your own good. For us."

"Y-you… I…" I struggled to find words. I wanted to argue, but resistance was becoming increasingly more difficult. Edward pulled me closer to him, still not releasing my arm.

"Bella, for me. Do this for me," he purred. "For us. Everything will be alright, Bella, but you have to trust me and do as I say."

"Bella, wake up." That voice was different… No. It was familiar. It was Jasper.

"For me," Edward whispered again. "For us."

"Bella, wake up." This was a dream. Jasper was trying to wake me up, but… Why couldn't I wake? I tried to move, but Edward just pulled me closer to him, away from Jasper.

"Jasper," I forced the word out. Edward growled lowly when Jasper responded.

"Yes, Bella, it's me. Wake up, sweetheart."

"Edward won't…" I tried to speak again, but Edward's eyes still held mine, just as his hand held my arm.

"Bella?" Jasper's voice called to me again. He sounded worried.

"Edward won't let me go," I gasped out. Edward growled again. The darkness around the two of us was bearing down, and Edward was pulling me under. "Help me," I whispered. "Jasper…"

I felt numb. I felt cold. Jasper's voice faded away and I felt… Love. Protectiveness. Determination… Hope. I gasped and my eyes flew open. Jasper pulled me out of the darkness, off the bed and into his arms.

"Bella, are you okay?" Jasper asked me gently. "What happened?"

"I don't know," I almost whimpered. "I was in the woods with Edward. I was trying to get back to you, but Edward grabbed me... He wouldn't let me go. Even when I heard your voice and realized I was dreaming, I couldn't wake up. He wouldn't let me go..." Slow tears were rolling down my cheeks. I didn't really know why I was crying, but I couldn't stop.

"Shh…" Jasper murmured, gently stroking my hair. "It's okay. It was only a dream."

"He didn't want me going back to any of you." Though it had only been a dream, I felt a need to explain. "You, the rest of the family, your friends from Denali, the wolves… He said I was his and he tried to dazzle me, and he growled at you."

"I was there?" Jasper prodded softly.

"No. When I heard your voice trying to wake me, Edward heard it too. He growled and tried to pull me farther away from you. He growled again when I spoke to you. He kept pulling me farther away."

"Edward isn't going to take you away from us," Jasper said, his voice suddenly sounding fiercely determined. "He isn't here."

"He isn't…? Oh!" I finally shook the dream from my mind with that subtle reminder. I leaned away from Jasper a little, so I could look in his eyes: Bright gold. "Emmett and your friends are here?" Jasper nodded.

"That's why I came to wake you. Emmett and I are going to be here in an hour to pick you up." I couldn't help but laugh at the human-conscious phrasing. Emmett and Jasper would drive back down here for Charlie's sake of course. Jasper smiled as he felt my mood lighten a little, but his eyes still watched me warily.

"Alice called and said there's going to be a big storm today," he began. I instantly understood his wary expression, and I knew what he was going to say next. "It might be a nice way to break the ice, so to speak," he said slowly, gauging my reaction. "A game might put our friends a little more at ease, and your scent won't be quite so strong in the clearing. It will help them adjust to it, and… well, I thought it might be a little more comfortable for you too, if you met the others in a less confined space. On the other hand, you probably associate vampire baseball games with…"

"No, I'm fine," I said quickly. It wasn't a complete lie. Yes, thinking of that first time made me remember meeting James, Laurent, and Victoria, but I forced myself to focus on the better part of that evening, remembering how free and joyful the Cullens were as they played. Allowing these vampires form Denali that sense of freedom was a good idea. "Is Charlie awake yet?" I asked Jasper. He nodded.

"He's watching the news downstairs… There's been another 'animal attack'."

"Victoria and Laurent?" I whispered as a fresh wave of anxiety rippled through me. Jasper nodded again.

"Probably," he almost growled. "It happened last night, south of here. The body was found on Copalis Beach."

"Would they really just dump the body there?" I asked, horrified but curious despite myself.

"It's possible, but not likely." I knew Jasper was probably gauging my reaction with his extra sense, but he didn't hesitate to answer me. "The man was probably out sailing in the moonlight. The ocean is one of the most convenient places for us to attack humans. We don't need to breathe, nor do we get tired, so we can swim far out into the water and stay under for an indefinite period of time. Any unsuspecting human out on the water never sees us coming, and what better place is there to leave the remaining body? The body sinks in the water and the smell of their blood draws other carnivorous animals to their remains. The real cause of their death is virtually indiscernible and any other humans classify their disappearance as 'lost at sea'."

"So, this… you said it was a man?" I said slowly. Jasper nodded and waited for me to continue. "This man probably died out on the water, but his body managed to wash ashore?" Jasper nodded, again.

"Most likely," he answered. I nodded mutely, unsure of what to say beyond that. Jasper pulled me closer to him again and hugged me lightly. "We'll stop them soon, Bella," he murmured in my ear. "Right now you need to get ready to go, okay?" I nodded into Jasper's chest and he kissed my forehead gently. "I'll be back in an hour," he said, and he jumped off my bed and out the window.

I showered quickly and changed into a light-weight brown sweater and jeans. I briefly considered dressing up a little more for the Denali vampires, but I quickly decided that was impractical and unnecessary. I would look like a plain human no matter what I wore. I pulled on a pair of comfortable sneakers before heading back to the bathroom to deal with my hair. That was when the first clap of thunder sounded. I peered out the small bathroom window and watched the rain fall from the charcoal gray sky for a minute, imagining one of the Denali vampires smashing a baseball far out into the woods as the thunder sounded again… If that sound was thunder. Next, I heard the familiar roar of Emmett's Jeep.

I felt my heart rate shoot up as I quickly pulled a brush through my hair a few times. It was cooperating well enough, so I would leave it down and hope for the best. I jumped a foot when I heard the doorbell ring. Even though they'd driven down, I was half-expecting Jasper and Emmett to still use a window for entry. I had to laugh at how little that thought troubled me. Vampires jumping into my house through open windows seemed normal to me, even after three months of thinking I would never see such vampires again.

I heard the low rumbling of a brief conversation coming from downstairs, though I couldn't make out the words. For some reason, I couldn't make myself move in the direction of the talking. I was used to having Jasper around again, but how would Emmett react to seeing me again? Jasper told Charlie Emmett missed me, but was that really the case? It was difficult to picture Emmett without a smile on his face, but I had seen that very phenomenon once, at my eighteenth birthday party when my blood was spilled right in front of him. That was my last memory of Emmett, and it was a difficult memory to shake off. The look on Emmett's face was even more difficult to forget than Jasper's loss of control. Emmett was always the enthusiastic, perpetually happy one… and I'd ruined it.

My feet were still rooted on the spot when the sound of Emmett's booming laughter brightened my spirits a little. He was in my house and he was laughing. That at least was good sign. I made myself move. I walked slowly out of the bathroom and made my way to the top of the stairs. By the time I reached the top step, I could here the downstairs conversation clearly.

"Yeah, it was hard to watch the Seahawks' last game," Emmett groaned animatedly. "At least the Bears are having a better season this year." They were talking about sports. No wonder Charlie seemed so comfortable.

"Son, if you're a Bears fan you'd better be quiet about it," Charlie warned playfully. "Any bear that comes near this couch is liable to get shot."

"Well you'd better get your shotgun, Dad," I said, announcing my presence as I started down the stairs. "Emmett can't get enough of those bears." Jasper burst out laughing at my little inside joke and Emmett guffawed loud enough to wake any still-sleeping neighbors. When he regained control of himself, Emmett grinned up at me. Something about it seemed a little forced to me, and I was instantly anxious. I stopped halfway down the stairs. I felt a wave of calm flow my way from Jasper while Emmett was the first to speak.

"Don't just stand there, Bella," Emmett laughed. "Get down here." Emmett stood up and opened his arms to me, but I was still frozen. The scene must have looked suspicious to Charlie, because I was suddenly hit with a very strong wave of enthusiasm that was not my own. I took the hint without risking a glance at Jasper. I forced a wide grin and launched myself down the stairs. I very nearly tripped as I ran into Emmett's arms, but he caught me in a hug that pulled my feet off the ground completely.

"I missed you, Bella," Emmett said in a completely different tone. His voice was sincere and subdued in a way that left me thoroughly confused. Nonetheless, I returned the sentiment.

"I missed you too, Emmett," I told him as he set me back down. "A lot." I added that last part too quietly for Charlie to hear. Emmett surely heard it, but he gave no noticeable response.

"Don't worry, Chief Swan," Emmett said to Charlie. "We won't let her anywhere near the bat. We just want to see if we can get her to pitch. That will be safe enough, don't you think?" Emmett spoke in a voice that sounded dead serious. Charlie laughed.

"I wouldn't put money on it either way," he laughed. "Just try not to hurt yourself too badly, eh, Bells?" Charlie said to me.

"Yeah, I'll try," I said, playing along as well as I could.

"Go have some fun, kiddo. You need it," Charlie told me. "Call me if you're going to be out late. Emmett, Jasper," Charlie nodded at each in farewell and headed off in the direction of his room. Jasper nudged my arm lightly.

"Have you eaten breakfast, Bella?" He asked me softly.

"No," I murmured, not looking up at him. "Just a sec." I walked into the kitchen and grabbed a brown sugar and cinnamon Pop-Tart before rejoining Emmett and Jasper in the living room. Both vampires cringed at my food choice, but they didn't say anything. At a loss for what to say or do next, I headed for the door. Emmett and Jasper followed me out. It was still raining outside, but not heavily, so I didn't go back inside for an umbrella. I locked the door behind me and made it all the way over to Emmett's Jeep before the two vampires suddenly sprang to life.

"I'll kill him," Emmett growled even as he picked me up with one arm and helped me into the backseat. Jasper leapt into the seat beside me and started strapping me into the off-roading harness. I looked at Jasper in alarm, surprised by Emmett's outburst. Jasper had a disgusted look on his face that puzzled me even more.

"I warned you," he said as Emmett jumped into the driver's seat. I watched in shock as Emmett gripped the ignition key too tightly and bent it. He growled lowly and straightened it before starting the engine.

"You said she was worse than this when you got here?" Emmett asked as he began to drive.

"You have no idea how much," Jasper said gravely, "nor do you want to. Trust me." I heard a strange groaning sound that seemed to be coming from where Emmett was tightly gripping the steering wheel.

"Emmett, stop," I whispered weakly. Emmett suddenly turned off to the side of the road and hit the brakes. I opened my mouth to attempt speaking again, but Emmett cut me off.

"I know this isn't what you meant," he said quickly as the Jeep came to a complete stop. He let go of the wheel and his huge hands clenched into fists as he turned around to face me. "I'm sorry, Bella," he said, unsmiling. "I'm sorry if I'm scaring you. I'm sorry…" A low growl replaced words and Emmett looked away from me again.

"I don't understand," I whispered. "What's wrong?"

"Edward," Jasper answered simply. Emmett growled again. "Emmett, go find a rock to beat to powder," Jasper said in a surprisingly weary tone. "Come back when you're done." Emmett leapt out of the Jeep and darted off without a word. I stared after him, stunned.

"Emmett wasn't expecting you to look so… broken," Jasper said softly. "I told him to be prepared. You look much better than you did when I first got here, but…"

"Do I really look that bad?" I asked, suddenly very self-conscious. Jasper was instantly contrite.

"No, no, Bella, it's not like that. You look beautiful," Jasper reassured me, brushing some of my hair behind my shoulder and gently lifting my chin until my eyes met his. "It's probably not even that noticeable to humans anymore. You just have a… it's visible to us, Bella. We can see the darkness in your eyes, the extra effort behind your smiles, the way even your frequent blushes just don't light up your skin quite as much as they used to. We can sense it. I truly feel it more than any of the others will be able to, but we can all sense it to some extent… Emmet wasn't ready for that, and it upset him. He'll be more like himself when he blows off a little steam."

"Yeah, sorry I lost it for a minute there, Bella," Emmett said as he reappeared and hopped back into the Jeep. He was smiling again, but it still looked a little artificial. At least he wasn't growling and breaking the Jeep.

"It's okay, Emmett," I said. I tried to make my voice bright and casual, but it didn't come out right. My mind was elsewhere and it refused to waste any effort on lying to vampires. Emmett and Jasper both shot me inquiring looks.

"So, it's Edward you're so upset with?" I asked tentatively. Emmett frowned at me. Jasper sighed and closed his eyes. He looked more like a weary human than I thought was possible.

"What did you think I was so upset about?" Emmett asked me, sounding surprised.

"Her," Jasper answered for me, opening his eyes and inclining his head toward me briefly. "I thought that's what I was getting from her back in the house," he said more to himself than Emmett, and then he turned to me. "You thought he was upset with you," he said. It wasn't a question. Jasper knew what I was feeling. Still, I nodded.

"Why would you think that?!" Emmett asked incredulously.

"Because she still doesn't believe we all still care about her," Jasper answered for me again.

Emmett blinked once, and then the growling started again. Jasper reached down and took my hand in his, stroking the back of my hand soothingly with his thumb. Emmett seemed a little beyond speech, so he turned back around and restarted the Jeep. I turned my face into Jasper's shoulder, trying to ignore the furious speed.

Within a matter of minutes, we were at the familiar dead-end curb by the woods. Jasper immediately started helping me out of the harness. As soon as I was unfastened, I turned to my door and found Emmett already standing there. He pulled me out of the Jeep and into a slightly too-tight hug. "Emmett, can't breathe," I gasped out and he set me down on my feet.

"I know you probably don't want to hear this, Bella," he began, "but I meant what I said back at your house. I really could kill Edward for what he did to you. I won't, because that will probably just upset you even more, but when Alice told us everything Jasper's been telling her… That didn't go over well with any of us. I'm sure Jasper has already told you this, but you clearly need to hear it again: We love you. Plain and simple, there it is. We love you. Got it?" I nodded and Emmett shook his head.

"No dice, little sis," he said. "I need you to speak. Tell me you know that we still love you." My heart fluttered at his familial endearment, but I couldn't give him what he wanted.

"Thanks, Emmett," I said lamely. Emmett frowned at my reply, but he didn't push me for a better one. He looked over my shoulder at Jasper.

"She'll probably be more comfortable with you carrying her," he said to Jasper. "I'll run behind you and keep an eye out for any followers. That okay with you, Bella?" He asked, looking back at me.

"Yeah, sounds good," I said with as much enthusiasm as I could force. I walked over to where Jasper was waiting and he easily lifted me onto his back. "Help me feel better?" I murmured softly in his hear. "I don't want your friends to think I'm a zombie. Being human is bad enough." Jasper pulled one of my hands up to his face and kissed it softly, a silent reassurance. He started to run and I hid my face in the crook of his neck, absorbing the waves of ease and love that poured out of him, one after the other, all the way to the clearing.

Somehow, I'd completely tuned out the sounds of the thunderstorm. The rain wasn't falling over the clearing, but as Jasper carried me into the wide open area, I was abruptly hyperaware of how the sound of the real thunder off in the distance blended with the sounds coming from the baseball game before me. We were still several yards away from them, but the five unfamiliar vampires zooming around the makeshift baseball field came to an abrupt halt and peered in or direction. I kept my death-grip on Jasper until he sent one last tidal wave of calm and reassurance my way. My grip slackened and he helped me climb down from his back. Emmett came up on my other side as soon as my feet touched down.

"We're right here, Bella," Emmett whispered almost inaudibly. "It's okay." I nodded once.

"Tanya, Irina, Kate, Carmen, Eleazar, this is Bella," Jasper spoke louder than Emmett, but his voice still didn't go far above the volume that was normal for close-range human conversation. I looked over the unfamiliar vampires quickly as he called out to them. Three of the females looked like they could be biologically related. One had curly strawberry blonde hair that hung down just below her shoulders while the other two had straight, platinum blonde hair. Of those two, one wore her hair long, almost to her waist, while the other wore a chin-length bob. The two remaining vampires looked very different. Their skin was darker than that of the three blonde females. They both had an odd faded olive tone to their skin; a strange color that still managed to look strikingly beautiful. The man and woman each had wavy, dark brown hair. The woman's hair cascaded almost all the way down to her waist while the man's hair fell to about the same length as Jasper's. They all looked stunningly beautiful, of course. I had to look like a windblown house-cat to them, fragile and frazzled with debatable sanity.

"Hi, Bella," the girl with the long blonde hair darted over first and greeted me with a friendly smile. "I'm Kate." Kate extended her hand to me and I found myself taking it without hesitation. Somehow, this girl reminded me of my first real encounter with Alice. Kate seemed so completely non-judgmental, and meeting her was a surprising relief.

"No testing just yet, Kate," Jasper warned. The thin, statuesque vampire rolled her eyes.

"Testing what?" I asked, looking between her and Jasper.

"My gift," Kate explained. "No one I've ever encountered, human or vampire, has been immune to it. It does just work mentally though, so if Jasper's theory is correct…"

"It may be, Kate," the dark-haired male chimed in. He and the other three women had all made their way closer during my brief exchange with Kate. He was standing only a few feet away from me, and he was staring at me curiously. "She's certainly blocking me. I've been trying to get around her shield since Jasper first carried her in, but it's impenetrable to me. If Jasper can still affect her, it must be a strictly mental shield."

"Dear, you haven't even introduced yourself," the dark-haired woman chided affectionately, stepping forward and laying a hand on the burly man's arm. "She's not an exhibit in a museum, let's not be rude. I'm Carmen, little one," she said to me kindly. "This is Eleazar. We were told Jasper explained Eleazar's gift to you?"

"Briefly, yes," I answered softly. I felt another wave of ease flow through me and shot Jasper a quick, grateful glance. "I don't quite understand, though," I was able to speak with more confidence with Jasper's help. "You said I have a shield?" I asked Eleazar, "What exactly do you mean by that?"

"Your immunity to Edward's gift was apparently not a random occurrence," Eleazar explained, still staring at me calculatingly. "Just as Jasper theorized, your immunity extends to other gifts, including mine. In the Volturi, we loosely classified that kind of gift as a shield. Is your use of it really so subconscious?" He asked, "Are you as unaware as you seem of your gift?"

"I guess so," I answered the intimidating vampire timidly. "I was never deliberately blocking Edward from my mind, and I'm not trying to block you." Eleazar surprised me by laughing incredulously.

"And you all just stumbled across her?" He asked, looking at Jasper and Emmett. He laughed once more but his voice took on a slightly frustrated tone as he continued speaking. "And Edward's singer, no less! Il suo cantante, and a shield, and he just happens across her in this little town! When I was with the Guard, I was sent all over the world looking for such talents, and here you all have it right in front of you and don't even realize it!"

"We do now," Emmett said innocently. Eleazar glared at him. Somehow, the expression on Eleazar's face didn't deter me form asking him another question.

"Did you call me Edward's singer?" I asked incredulously. "I don't understand. I can't sing at all." Eleazar laughed lightly, his flustered demeanor dissolving away quickly. I couldn't tell if Jasper was helping or if Eleazar's mood swings were natural. I didn't plan on asking.

"No, that's not what I meant, little one," Eleazar explained. "It's just another special name we used among the Volturi. When a human's blood is as potent to a vampire as yours is to Edward, we call them that vampire's singer. It's your blood that sings to Edward, so to speak, not your voice."

"So, can I try now?" Kate chimed in randomly. I nearly jumped at the sudden interruption. I blinked as I tried to remember what she was talking about.

"Your gift?" I asked her. "You can't tell if it works or not, already?"

"No," she said. "I need physical contact. My gift isn't a mere sense like Eleazar's, and I can't project it beyond my own body like Jasper can project his gift. I can shock people who touch me with an electrical current of sorts. It used to only be in my palms, but I've learned to project it through my entire body over time. If you're so unaware of your gift, I suppose you've never tried to project it?" Kate asked me. I shook my head.

"A lot of talented vampires find projection impossible," Kate was quick to jump in with a disclaimer. "It's certainly difficult for me to manage, and you're still human, so the chance of you being able to do it is practically nonexistent, but I was just curious. Maybe you could project it if you were changed." I felt my heart skip a beat at how matter-of-factly Kate spoke about my changing. The idea of me becoming a vampire seemed to make perfect sense to her. My mind reeled at the thought and it took me a moment to collect myself.

"Can you define 'an electrical shock of sorts'?" I asked her.

"Kate can put a vampire flat on his back if she chooses to," Jasper answered for her. "That amount of voltage would be lethal to a human, of course, but she can control the magnitude. You could think of it this way, Bella: The voltage she can exert ranges from a static shock you might get from another person… to a being struck by a lightning bolt."

"While standing in a pool of water," Emmett added with a chuckle of anticipation. Jasper shot him a quick, warning look.

"You don't have to worry, Bella," Jasper reassured me. "You're probably immune to her talent, and she'll start with the lowest voltage as a precaution. Right, Kate?"

"Of course," Kate said with a bright smile. "Ready, Bella?" She asked me. Her smile grew even wider as she extended her open hand to me. Though Jasper surely felt how nervous I was, I tried to hide that fact from the others by taking Kate's hand quickly… and nothing.

"Are you trying?" I asked her.

"Yes," she said in a slightly strained voice. Her fingers closed around my hand, holding me firmly in place. Still, I felt nothing but her cool hand holding mine.

"Maybe you could try a higher voltage?" I found myself encouraging her.

"You've already been hit by a lightning bolt, Bella," Kate almost growled in frustration. Watching her beautifully arched eyebrows knit together in concentration, I found myself feeling bad about the whole thing. She clearly hated being so ineffectual.

"Ow, Kate! Stop!" The other blonde-haired vampire suddenly screeched. There were several more similar outbursts as all the vampires around Kate and me were suddenly on the ground. Kate yelped and leapt back from me like I'd burned her. I was frozen on the spot, as figuratively shocked as the vampires around me were literally shocked by whatever had just happened. Eleazar was the first one to recover. He leapt back to his feet and gaped at Kate.

"How did you do that?" He demanded of her. "You still didn't affect Bella, but you projected out to all the rest of us. I sensed your projection before I even felt the shock!"

"It was Bella!" Kate nearly screeched in reply. I gaped at her while everyone else stared at me.

"Wh-what are you talking about?" My voice cracked as I forced it out. "I didn't do anything!" I felt my heart rate accelerating as I defended myself. That must have been Jasper's cue. All of a sudden, I was hit by a tsunami of calm that clearly washed out into everyone else too. Kate's defensive stance relaxed substantially and Eleazar's alarmed expression faded slightly.

"But, I felt it come from you," Kate spoke in a much more controlled voice.

"Felt what? I didn't do anything," I repeated.

"I felt… more power come from you," Kate tried to explain. "More strength and energy. You… you amplified my power. I was straining to test my highest voltage on you, and then I was projecting. I felt my power increase, but it happened too quickly for me to stop it."

"Bella," the sound of Jasper's voice made me jump. I spun around too quickly and nearly fell, but Jasper caught me and pulled me around to face him. "Your father," he spoke as though conveying vital information. I blinked a few times, trying to catch up with his train of thought.

"What about Charlie?" I asked stupidly.

"Just yesterday, Bella," Jasper reminded me. "When I came to your house and met Charlie, I projected an entirely different emotion to him than I was projecting to you, remember?" My mind momentarily short-circuited as it tried to process what Jasper was thinking. After a few seconds of rewiring though, all the pieces came together with a nearly audible click.

"It is me," I said slowly. Jasper nodded.

"I think it might be," he said. "I don't think any of us want to keep testing with Kate, so I want you to try amplifying my gift again. Can you do that, Bella?"

"I don't know how," I whispered anxiously.

"What were you thinking about right before we all bit the dust?" The girl with the short blonde hair grumbled. I looked at her in mute surprise.

"That's Irina," Jasper said, sensing my reaction. I looked at the strawberry blonde-haired girl beside Irina. I knew I should be able to name her by process of elimination, but my mind was too busy with other things.

"I'm Tanya," she introduced herself in a strangely flat, though still beautiful voice. "What were you thinking about?" She repeated Irina's question impatiently.

"I felt bad, because it was upsetting her," I mumbled in my haste to answer. I shook my head out like a horse, refusing to think of what all these vampires thought of the action, and I made myself speak more coherently. "Kate, I mean. I was wishing I could do something to help her and… I guess I did."

"Think back to yesterday afternoon, Bella," Jasper encouraged. "Is that how you were feeling when you boosted my gift?"

"Sort of," I said. "I mean… I realized you were trying to get Charlie out of the house and I was ruining it, so I stopped struggling against you, and I tried to focus on playing along."

"So, it's a desire to help others attain their goals?" Eleazar said more to himself than the rest of us. "And physical contact?"

"Wouldn't Edward or Alice have experienced it if that were the case?" Carmen chimed in curiously.

"I was always glad Edward couldn't read my mind," I thought aloud, "and I always discouraged him from eavesdropping. As for Alice…"

"Didn't you spend more time ducking her visions than encouraging them?" Emmett laughed. "That's how you got away from her and Jasper when you were in Phoenix."

"We may have it, then," Jasper said. He pulled me around to face him again, and he captured my eyes with his. "Look only at me, Bella," he instructed as he lifted my arms above his shoulders. "Wrap your arms around my neck, so we can see if any physical contact works or if it has to be hand-to-hand. Try to relax and forget that we have an audience, okay? Just try to help me if you can. I'm going to try to project different emotions to everyone. Can you help me do that? Do you want me to be able to do that, Bella?"

"Yes," I whispered as Jasper began pouring pure love into me without warning.

"That's it, Bella," he encouraged. "Focus. Tell me what emotions you feel me projecting to you," he told the others behind me.

"Love."

"Love."

"Love."

"Love."

"Love."

"Love," I heard six voices respond and I blushed furiously. That was awkward. I didn't want them feeling what Jasper was making me feel.

"Calm."

"Fear."

"Sadness."

"Joy."

"Anger."

"Apathy," the six voices spoke again… It worked.

"I already told them how I feel about you," Jasper whispered in my ear. "Don't feel embarrassed. I just thought starting with such a personal emotion would give you more motivation to help me project different emotions." A small part of me wanted to reach up and smack Jasper for messing with me like that. The larger part of me, however, was lost in the relief he was projecting. That emotion, I didn't try to split. "Relief?" Jasper asked everyone behind me, to check.

"Yes," they all chorused as one.

"It worked," Carmen said in a stunned voice. I stepped out of Jasper's arms and turned to face her. Stunned she might sound, but she looked delighted.

"So, does this mean she has two talents?" Tanya asked Eleazar. Eleazar was staring at me with wide eyes. He looked… disturbed.

"Yes," he murmured almost inaudibly.

"Is that bad?" I asked him, confused by his reaction. He didn't answer.

"It isn't bad, is it, dear?" Carmen asked him. That surprised me even more. This woman was clearly Eleazar's mate, but she was just as confused as I was.

"Specie in via di estinzione," Eleazar murmured in what sounded like a mixture of wonder and fear.

"Endangered species?" Carmen translated. Eleazar nodded. Jasper growled lowly and Eleazar nodded again.

"You know of them?" He asked Jasper.

"Not personally," Jasper answered gravely, "but I heard of them during the wars. Many covens were searching for them, but none were ever found to my knowledge."

"Who are 'they'?!" Tanya and I both demanded at the same time.

"Bambino di Saturno," Eleazar said, giving me another mystified stare.

"Child of Saturn," Jasper translated. "A name given to vampires with multiple supernatural talents. Saturn is the Roman god also known as Old Father Time."

"The name first came from the Volturi, in Italy," Eleazar continued the explanation. "In Roman mythology, Saturn ruled the gods before Jupiter. Jupiter, Neptune, and Pluto were his children. Those children represented air, water, and death, the three things that time cannot kill. When the Volturi family formed, three millennia ago, they called multitalented vampires Children of Saturn because of their potentially devastating power. In the 1600's, a Saturno was captured and sentenced to execution for endangering Jane and Alec, and for refusing to reveal the location of his son, a newborn Saturno Demetri couldn't track. The Saturno lashed out at Aro upon his sentencing, and he unleashed devastating powers when the Guard attacked him. The Guard finally did manage to kill him, but it was because of that man's actions that the Volturi decided Saturnos were too dangerous to allow to roam free. For hundreds of years, being a Child of Saturn was a punishable offense in their eyes, because such power was sure to cause problems in terms of our secrecy, and because power-hungry vampire warlords could wreak havoc with such gifts at their disposal. When the Saturno population was nearly decimated, though… they had a change of heart.

"The only coven to ever take on the Volturi was from Romania. They detested the leadership of the Volturi and wanted to claim that position in our world for themselves. In the early 1700's, the Volturi elders caught wind of the Romanians' growing numbers and the Guard was sent out to find Saturnos for aid. No Saturnos were found, but Jane and Alec each had one devastating power when they were changed. The two of them together were virtually unbeatable, making the following massacre of the Romanians almost too easy. Only two Romanian vampires were allowed to escape.

"The Volturi no longer sought to kill Saturnos, but they did continue searching for them. Rather than destroy such power, they wanted to hone it. They wanted to adopt Saturnos into the Guard, so no one would ever dare challenge them or attempt to harm them again, especially after werewolves⏤true Children of the Moon unlike the shape-shifters Carlisle treated with here⏤killed Marcus' mate, Didyme. Unfortunately, many other covens began seeking out Saturnos for the very reason the Volturi feared: They wanted the power to defeat the Volturi Guard."

"That's how I heard about them," Jasper said pensively. "Every coven in I encountered during the wars wanted to find a Child of Saturn. Any Saturno would boost their coven's power dramatically. A Saturno with particularly helpful powers would grant them virtual invincibility."

"So…" I spoke slowly as I tried to comprehend what this mythic story was meant to tell me. "If I'm a Child of Saturn, would I be considered one of those 'particularly helpful' ones?" I asked. Jasper looked at me sadly and nodded.

"A shield and an amplifier," Jasper said gravely. "And we know you can already project one of your gifts, even if not the other. Both powers will become much stronger if you're changed. You don't want to know the lengths to which some of our kind would go to claim you as their own if they knew about you, Bella."

"I've never encountered one in its human form," Eleazar breathed in wonder, still staring at me. "They're so near complete extinction… I've only encountered two in my lifetime. Many of our kind have never encountered one. Many don't even know Saturnos are real."

The group of vampires around me continued conversing in tense tones, but their voices all started blurring together. I was a human. I was a zombie. I was part of an endangered species. I was a Saturno in human form. I thought of Eleazar's story and chill of fear shot straight down my spine.I really was a danger magnet. I started to step around Jasper, but his hand on my arm stopped me.

"I just want to be alone for a minute," I pleaded even as I tried to keep from losing control and screaming. "Please?" I begged. Jasper hesitated and I felt myself starting to cry. I tried to fight the tears back, but one escaped my eye and started rolling down my cheek. Jasper leaned in and tenderly kissed it away.

"Don't wander far," he said softly, "and please try not to scrape yourself up too badly." Jasper forced a smile and I mirrored his expression.

"You'll come find me if I get lost?" I asked. Jasper abruptly pulled me against his chest and hugged me tightly.

"Always," his vow was a whisper in my ear before he kissed my hair and released me. I turned away without looking at any of the others and headed off into the woods.

My mind reeled relentlessly as I wove my way deeper and deeper into the trees. What did all of this mean? How did I manage to go from being a weak little human, one minute, to being a mythical creature the next? I was used to everyone I cared about turning out to be a supernatural creature of some sort, but since when was I one? I was a vampire with a devastating amount of power trapped in human form! What would Jacob and the other wolves think of that? One question after another spun through my thoughts fast enough to make me dizzy.

I stopped to sit on a fallen tree trunk and I realized I had absolutely no idea where I was or how far into the woods I'd wandered. Well, technically I didn't promise Jasper anything. He did promise to come find me, however, so I would just wait until he followed my scent and found me. Sure enough, I heard rustling in the nearby brush, and I turned to see…

Laurent.


	10. Seven Scars

♂︎(Jasper's POV)

"We should have ignored Edward's stupid idea of keeping her human," Emmett grumbled belligerently. "We should have changed her sooner. We should have let her change. James bit her! Why couldn't Edward just let the venom spread? That's what Bella wanted!"

"You know I agreed when you first told us about her, Emmett," Irina began tentatively, "but maybe it's better this way after all. If you'd changed her before you really knew what she was, who knows what could have happened? Think of what a Saturno will be like as a newborn."

"Are you on Edward's side now, Irina?" I couldn't stop myself from growling at her. "Do you think we should just leave her human and forget about her?

"That's not what I said," Irina retorted coolly.

"You don't even know if she still wants to be changed, Jasper!" Tanya snapped. "Strange as it may be for any human to want this life, do you want to force it on her now?"

"Better us than someone else," Eleazar murmured thoughtfully.

"I agree," Irina sighed.

"What?" Tanya growled incredulously.

"Cool it, Tanya," Irina growled back. "Please forget for one minute that you're jealous of Bella and think logically. If we changer her, we'll take proper care of her. Most of our kind would either be too ill-equipped to handle her, letting her run rampant, or they'd abuse their access to her power and try to control her like a slave!"

"There's a reason Edward didn't want her changed," Tanya began, but Irina cut her off.

"This is not about Edward, Tanya! This is about Bella! It's about all of us! Edward left her, Tanya. Why are you so threatened by her?"

"I am not threatened by her!" Tanya snapped.

"Yes you are!" Irina growled. "You've wanted Edward for decades, and you found out he wanted a human girl instead! Now we all know she's a human Saturno! Even though Edward broke that poor girl's heart, you're afraid he'll take her back! Did you see her, Tanya?! Did you really look at her, or were you too busy thinking of all the ways she's not right for Edward? He broke her. How can you possibly envy her that?" That last line was a kill-strike. Tanya faltered and made no response. No audible response, anyway. I felt guilt and sympathy warring with jealousy and love inside her.

"What about you, Irina?" Kate broke the brief, ringing silence. "You weren't so eager to come help Bella either." There was no malice in Kate's voice as she spoke, only matter-of-fact curiosity. "When you heard Laurent might be helping the tracker's mate hunt her, you didn't want to get involved."

"That's not true," Irina corrected calmly. "I still have trouble believing Laurent would do this, but my feelings have nothing to do with Bella."

"And if at any point you have to choose between them?" I asked her. "If you have to choose between Bella and Laurent? What then?" I knew that was really an impossible question for her to answer, so I waited patiently for her attempt. Before her answer came, another sound shattered my world.

"Shit, that's Bella!" Emmett growled and leapt to his feet. Bella was screaming, and I knew that scream. The sound rocked me to my core and I charged toward it without a word to the others. They followed on my heels without any other prompt.

How could I have been so stupid? I shouldn't have let her wander off. If nothing else, I should have followed after her as soon as her heartbeat was out of earshot. I could have given her the privacy she wanted without letting her get into trouble, but I blew it. We all had.

"Jasper!" The most beautiful voice in the world screamed my name in agony. "Emmett!" Another shrill cry for help tore through the air and I pushed myself faster. I had never run so fast, not even as a newborn as far as I could recall. The beautiful, breakable girl I loved was in trouble. Nothing else in the world existed. A few more yards and I smelled it: Bella's blood. Please, no…

Suddenly, Emmett was running level with me, his usually smiling face contorted with cold fury that nearly matched my own. Nearly. I heard all the others picking up speed behind us as Bella's potent scent signaled to us that we were very close. We burst through a few more rows of trees, tearing some of them down in the process.

"How could you?" Irina growled in a mixture of rage and agony. Laurent was crouched down over Bella. Her brown sweater had been almost completely torn off and several fresh bites covered her skin: One layered over the scar on her right wrist, one in the right crook of her neck, one on her left shoulder, one just above where her lacy pink bra covered her right breast, and one on her right hip… but Laurent wasn't drinking her blood, and she was no longer screaming. She was conscious, but she wasn't screaming… Was there no venom in those wounds? I quickly decided I really didn't care. Laurent leapt away from Bella and I locked on my target, preparing to strike.

"Irina, it's not what it looks like!" Laurent spluttered, shocked by our sudden presence.

"You bit her five times!" Irina shrieked furiously.

"But look at her, Irina!" Laurent pleaded while Emmett and I both growled in outrage. "She's not in any real pain! I sucked the venom right back out like Edward did!"

"You dare compare what you're doing to what Edward did?" It was Tanya's turn to scream ferociously. "Edward didn't bite her before taking the venom back out! You're torturing her, you sick bastard!"

"You don't understand," Laurent said imploringly. "Let me explain." He then made the mistake of taking a step toward the spot where Bella was struggling to cover herself and scoot away. Emmett and I both sprang at him.

"Stop!" Irina screamed, leaping in front of us and blocking Laurent. Emmett and I both growled as we landed short of our target and glared incredulously at Irina. "Don't… Just let him try to explain," she pleaded incoherently. "Please… For me. Just wait…" Irina continued her ambivalent rambling while I assessed the area. Everyone had changed positions. Behind Irina, Laurent had faltered a few steps back, but Eleazar, Carmen, and Tanya were surrounding him from behind, blocking that escape. Kate had moved over to Bella and was clearly holding her breath while assessing Bella's injuries. Kate looked up from Bella and caught my eye.

"I think her right hand is broken," Kate announced in a tight voice, still holding her breath, "and she may have a toe or two broken, as well." I was about to push past Irina and rip Laurent to shreds when Irina rounded on him first. The glare she gave Laurent must have been impressive, because Laurent was instantly defensive.

"That's not my fault!" He insisted. "I was being careful not to break her! Victoria told me to leave her intact! You would think she'd know better than to try fighting a vampire off. The stupid girl caused those injuries to herself!"

"Don't you dare insult her!" Irina shrieked in response. Fear and anxiety rippled through Laurent as he realized he was further repelling his only protector. I could at least help him dodge that bullet. I had my own questions.

"What was that about Victoria?" I demanded, "What is her part in this? Where is she?"

"I did not want to be involved in this hunt," Laurent was quick to answer me. Wise choice. As he continued speaking, I kept my extra sense carefully trained on him. Using it as a form of lie detection, I paid close attention to the levels of anxiety, guilt, and excitement coming from him as he spoke. "Victoria has her ways… I left Alaska when she came and found me there." True. "She blames me for James' death just as she blames Bella and the rest of your family. She believes things would have gone differently if I had remained with her and James when he chose to pursue Bella." True. "Nomadic covens are not as civilized as your family is. You know that better than any of the others, Jasper. To Victoria, I am a traitor to my coven. Do you remember the consequences of betraying a volatile coven?"

"I witnessed some very creative torture techniques during the wars, yes," I answered with as much venom as I could force into my voice. Laurent flinched, but he continued his explanation.

"Consider what she is doing to Bella. A mere human, and Victoria is hell-bent on destroying her and everything she holds dear. She threatened me with the same treatment." Mostly true.

"If this is really about redeeming a betrayal, Victoria would have given you very specific orders," I felt myself regressing into my past self as I interrogated Laurent. I was a soldier in the Southern wars and he was an impetuous newborn in need of taming. "What were they?"

"She wanted to make a mockery of my attempt to follow your dietary lifestyle," Laurent answered promptly. Somewhat true. "She told me to bite Bella seven times, one bite for each member of your family." Revolting, but true. "She said it was a test of my loyalty to my new lifestyle and the control necessary to maintain it. I could not kill or change the girl. I had to suck the venom out of each bite, taking no more blood from her than that." True.

"And what then?" Irina demanded for me, "What if we hadn't interrupted?"

"Victoria is waiting for me somewhere in the mountains." Laurent answered slowly. Lie. "I was to bring the girl back to her when I was finished."

"And Victoria would have killed her?" Emmett growled from beside me. Laurent hesitated for a fraction of a second.

"I don't know." Lie.

"You lying son of a bitch!" I loosed my most threatening growl. Just as so many newborns had, Laurent stumbled backward in his rush to retreat from the sound. He didn't get far. Eleazar, Carmen, and Tanya tightened their ranks behind him. "What is Victoria's plan for Bella?"

"She wants Bella to suffer," Laurent blurted in fear. "She wants to kill the girl slowly. That's all I know! She wanted me to bring the human back to her and leave!"

"And what were you going to do then?" Irina's voice was barely audible, her emotions much stronger: anger, sympathy, disgust, guilt, disenchantment, love, and hate. "Were you going to came back to us? Were you just going to reappear and pretend you were simply on an extended hunting trip? One that didn't involve humans? Were you going to lie to all of us and pray Alice didn't see anything? Why, Laurent? I loved you. How…? How could you do this?" I decided this was a perfect moment to project what I was feeling from Laurent out to everyone.

"Irina, please understand. I was afraid," Laurent pleaded. True. "My plan was… I was worried Alice would see something, so I was going to call and ask you to travel somewhere else with me." Lie. "I would have told you, eventually." Lie. "I just couldn't face the others." True. "I still wanted you, Irina. I love you too." Lie. There were low growls all around. I quickly pulled my gift back inward when I felt Irina's heart break.

"Jasper can feel it when you lie, Laurent," she informed him softly. "He was just projecting." Laurent chose that moment to drop all the pretense. Frustration and agitation flared in him. I instinctively grabbed Irina and pulled her behind me right before Laurent snapped and loosed a belligerent growl.

"Can't anyone in this family keep their gifts to themselves?" He growled in sudden outrage. Perhaps my earlier analogy wasn't so far off the mark. He really was beginning to act like a volatile newborn. He even made the stupid mistake of advancing on me. I tensed to take him down, but someone else beat me to it.

"No." A human could have heard a pin drop onto snow in the silence that followed Bella's answer. No one spoke… Then Laurent abruptly crumpled to the ground with a cry of pain. I took the opportunity to glance in Bella's direction.

Kate and Bella were both staring purposefully at Laurent. Bella's unharmed left hand was firmly latched onto Kate's arm. Laurent growled and writhed on the ground, clearly in pain, and I understood. Bella was using her power. She was amplifying Kate's power while Kate attacked Laurent.

"Bella, Kate, stop!" Irina screamed and tried to get back to Laurent. She tried to edge around Emmett and me, but Emmett grabbed hold of her and held her back. Laurent's thrashing stopped and he leapt to his feet. I tensed again as he turned to glare at Bella and Kate, but he didn't move toward them.

"Kate and Bella?" He growled in stunned disbelief. "What's going on here?"

"That's what I was going to ask," another unexpected voice surprised me. I didn't risk looking away from Laurent. I recognized the voice and the foul smell.

"Jacob, no!" Bella shouted in protest. "Stay back!"

"Bella, you're half-naked and covered in fresh bite marks," Jacob almost growled. "I'm not going anywhere. If you bloodsuckers don't point us to whoever hurt her right now, you're all gonna burn." Us? A chorus of menacing growls signaled the presence of the rest of the wolf pack behind me. Laurent was frozen in shock, so I allowed myself to face them.Counting Jacob, there were eight. Three more since yesterday? Were these wolves or oversized rabbits? Their numbers were alarming, but at least their presence spared us the task of killing Laurent ourselves.

"Don't you recognize this slinking coward behind me, Jacob?" I addressed the only one of the wolves in human form. Jacob's eyes locked on a spot just behind my head.

"This one is Laurent?" The mammoth boy demanded. His body was vibrating as he struggled not to phase, but I didn't try to calm him. I nodded in reply.

"Where's the female?" Jacob demanded.

"Not here. We have yet to see her."

"That's all we need to know," Jacob growled and he let his body collapse. He phased and fell in line with the rest of the pack. They began to advance and everyone moved very quickly. Laurent tried to run, but Eleazar, Carmen, and Tanya caught him and threw him back toward the wolves. Meanwhile, Irina thrashed in Emmett's arms.

"No!" She screamed while Emmett wrestled with her.

"Irina, you have to let him go!" Emmett tried to reason with her, but she twisted in his arms and tried to bite him. The wolves growled in warning. I threw a wave of lethargy at Irina and grabbed her arms, helping Emmett restrain her.

"Irina, it's time to choose," I told her as I poured feelings of ease into her. My gift was no match for a shattering heart, but I tried. In many ways, it reminded me of those first days with Bella. It was going to be hell, but just as the flames began...an angel came to help.

Kate appeared beside me, carrying Bella in her arms. Bella reached out and touched my arm while Kate held her far enough away from Irina to avoid injury. "Don't split your power, Jasper," Bella instructed in a hoarse voice. "Just increase the magnitude. I'll help." In that moment, I fell even more in love with Bella. Not only was she keeping a cool head in this extreme situation, but she was selflessly ignoring her own poor condition in favor of helping Irina. The woman really was an angel.

As I was instructed, I focused on pushing the magnitude of my power to new heights, and it worked. Irina's struggles quickly subsided while Bella and I worked together to temporarily numb her pain. "Irina, you have to choose," I said to her again. "It's time to choose." Irina looked over at Laurent's cowering form for a moment, and then she looked at Bella. A fresh wave of devastating emotions lashed at my numbing influence, but I kept them at bay with Bella's help. After a couple seconds of tense silence, Irina made her choice.

"Bella," she whispered brokenly. She gave over to my influence completely and fell back into Emmett's arms. I looked up at the wolves and locked eyes with the one I recognized as Jacob. I nodded once and he nodded in reply. No longer wary of Irina's retaliation, the wolves stalked toward Laurent. He took off running again, but the wolves followed right on his heels, so Eleazar, Carmen, and Tanya let them pass.

"They'll be able to… take care of it properly?" Eleazar struggled to phrase his question delicately.

"Yes," I told him. "They'll be fine." Even with our careful phrasing, Irina whimpered in agony.

"Let Jasper carry me, Kate?" Bella's hoarse voice cracked as she spoke softly from beside me. "He needs my amplification to help Irina." Kate smiled gratefully at and Bella nodded. I started to let go of Irina, but Bella was quick to stop me. "No, Jasper. Keep contact with her. Every little bit helps. You can carry me on your back."

"Bella, you can't hold on," I protested. "You're in no condition for that."

"I'll be fine," Bella insisted. "The bites only sting a little. Kate and I got the bleeding to stop, and only my right hand is broken. I don't use my hands to hold on. I use my arms."

"Tesoro Bella, you must be exhausted," Carmen murmured, stroking Bella's hair in an Esme-like fashion.

"How long will it take to run back to the Jeep?" Bella asked in earnest. "I won't have to hold on all the way back to the house. Jasper can carry me on his back while Emmett carries Irina and runs alongside us until we get to the Jeep. As soon as we're in the Jeep, Emmett can drive us back to the house while Jasper and I try to keep Irina as comfortable as possible. We won't be able to block her pain forever, but we can at least get her back to the house before we let it hit. Please," Bella pleaded, looking at each of us in turn. "I know some of what she's feeling right now. Let me help her in what little way I can. As soon as we get her back to the house, you can fuss over my physical injuries all you want. We just have to help her first."

"Dolce angelo," Carmen gushed appreciatively.

"Okay, Bella," I consented. "Help her climb on, Kate?"

"Of course," Kate replied. She moved a little closer to me and lifted Bella higher up. Carmen came forward too, carefully helping Bella wrap her arms and legs around me. Tanya stepped around us and helped Irina get positioned on Emmett's back while I was careful to keep one hand on her.

"Tanya, Kate, why don't you two run ahead of us," Eleazar suggested. "Go back to the house and make one of the beds ready for Bella."

"Mine," I suggested. "Find some antiseptic, bandages, and bracing kits in Carlisle's study. Have them ready for when we arrive."

"Carmen and I will run behind you and Emmett, in case Bella falls off," Eleazar said to me. Carmen nodded in agreement.

"We'll take her if she gets too tired," she said.

"Wait," Kate cut in. "Bella will freeze." Oh, right. Bella was on my back wearing nothing but jeans and a lacy bra… Not the time to let myself think about that!

"Emmett, rip your sweatshirt," I quickly thought of the best way to cover Bella: "It will be big enough for her to use as a blanket." Emmett didn't hesitate for a second. He ripped his sweatshirt off with both hands, careful to only make one long tear from top to bottom, and he eased it out from under Irina without dislodging her. Kate took the makeshift blanket from Emmett and gently tucked it around Bella, tying the sleeves around her neck to hold it in place.

"We'll find some clothes for her, back at the house," Kate assured me and I smiled at her in gratitude.

"As soon as Bella is in the Jeep, Carmen and I will join you," Eleazar told Kate and Tanya. They both nodded and took off running with no further prompt.

"We'll have to be careful about our juxtaposition to each other," I warned Emmett. "I have to keep contact with Irina while we run, and you'll be less affected if you run just a little ahead of me, keeping Irina between us."

"Got it," Emmett affirmed and he started running at a pace that was only slightly slower than normal. I kept one hand on Irina's arm as we ran, using my other arm to hold Bella's legs in place around my waist. The wind our running created blew the scent of the dried blood on Bella's skin into my face, but the smell didn't aggravate my thirst much. It just made me want to turn around and help the wolves rip Laurent to pieces. I couldn't do that to Irina, and my Bella needed me. My Bella… I loved the sound of that.

Bella never ceased to amaze me. She held on all the way back to the Jeep without slipping once, and all the while she kept her amplifying talent focused on me. She was definitely a Saturno, and she was absolutely incredible. Eleazar seemed to agree.

"I've never seen her equal," he said in approval as he and Carmen helped Emmett and me transferring Irina and Bella into the Jeep. "If she is changed, she will be one of the greatest in our history. How Edward could ever abandon such a find, I will never understand."

"Nor will I, Eleazar," I murmured too softly for Bella's ears to hear as I slid into the backseat, between her and Irina. "Nor will I."

Eleazar and Carmen left shortly after that, and Emmett started to drive. I noticed that skin-on-skin contact wasn't necessary for Bella's amplification to work, so I avoided such contact in favor of keeping her as warm as possible. Of course, if I could reap the benefits of her amplification by simply resting my hand on her fully clothed knee, that meant she was actually projecting just slightly outside of her body… I would have to pass that observation along to Eleazar.

Most of the ride back home went without a hitch. During the last few minutes, Bella's fatigue caught up with her. She started falling asleep and losing focus, leaving me to soothe Irina without amplification. I was still able to dull Irina's emotions, but they became much more difficult to suppress.

"How could he do this to her?" Irina murmured when we were three minutes from home and Bella was completely asleep.

"Laurent?" I asked her. She shook her head.

"Edward," she breathed. "The pain I'm feeling now… Is this how she feels?"

"All the time," I answered honestly. "It was so much worse when I first came back here, but it's still awful. I still try to keep her dreams away most nights. She always has horrible nightmares… I can't imagine what she was like during those first couple months. I pity her father for having to see it."

"Do you really believe he still loves her?" Irina asked. "That he was lying to her when he said he didn't want her?"

"Part of me hopes so," I answered, "but… part of me doesn't."

"You love her," Irina breathed.

"I do," I told her.

"And she loves you?"

"She hasn't said so yet, but I've felt it. I just… I don't know if she would prefer Edward… She's still grieving. I know part of her still loves him…"

"Did you notice how she reacted to all those new bites?" Emmett suddenly joined in the conversation.

"She barely seemed to notice them," I said.

"That probably has to do with you, bro," Emmett commented.

"Maybe," I conceded. "We can ask her about it later. She needs rest." Even as I spoke, we pulled into the garage.

"Bella, sweetheart," I said softly, gently shaking her awake. She groaned wearily and looked up at me with sleep-robbed eyes. "I'm sorry to wake you, but we have to clean your wounds and get some fresh clothes on you. We need to at least put a brace on your hand. Carlisle will do a better job when he gets here, but we can't leave your injuries unattended. I'll help you go to sleep again as soon as we're done."

"What about Charlie?" Bella mumbled drowsily. It was almost enough to make me laugh. Even in this drained and dragging state, she still managed to worry about her father.

"We'll handle Charlie," Emmett promised as he hopped out of the Jeep. "It's barely five o'clock, anyway. We have time to think of something." Emmett lingered beside Irina and I knew what he was waiting for. I finally broke contact with Irina and winced when she whimpered in pain. Emmett helped her out of the Jeep and started guiding her back to the house. Bella stared after them fretfully.

"Please don't worry about anyone else right now, Bella," I said to her as I lifted her into my arms and leapt lightly out of the Jeep. "You promised we could all fuss over you when we got back here," I added somewhat teasingly. I was rewarded with a tiny, tired smile. "We'll take care of everything," I promised her, "starting with you." Bella gave me another faint smile and ceased in her protests as I carried her inside. Once inside, I handed her off to Carmen and Kate.

"We'll get her changed and clean the bites," Carmen assured me. "We'll give her something for the pain too. Once she's decent, Eleazar can brace her hand, and perhaps her toes if they're fractured. He's not as good as Carlisle of course, but he'll do a good enough job."

"I don't doubt that," I sighed as I watched Carmen and Kate carry Bella away. Watching her, I couldn't help but go back through Irina's questions in my head. I knew I had to come to terms with the fact that Bella would probably never be completely over Edward. I could understand that. A part of me would always belong to Alice. Always…

"Jasper?" Carmen called from upstairs several minutes later. I ran up to meet her.

"Eleazar's just finishing up with her, in your room," she told me. "She wants to see you." I was inside my room in a nanosecond. I was surprised to see Irina on the bed beside Bella. Eleazar was kneeling at the foot of the bed, fixing a brace to the big toe of her right foot. He looked up at me when I entered.

"She can't wait two more days for Carlisle," he said. "What I've done is okay for now, but she needs much better attention. The break in her hand is particularly bad and she's going to have some serious bruises. However futile it might have been, she put up one hell of a fight."

"It was stupid," Bella mumbled and blushed faintly. "Laurent was right. I should know better by now than to try fighting a vampire."

"Nothing about what Laurent did was right," Irina said with noticeable effort.

"And the fact that you tried to fight doesn't make you stupid," Eleazar said warmly. "It makes you strong and spirited. There's nothing wrong with that, Saturno bambina."

"Thanks, Eleazar," Bella muttered shyly, and then she looked up at me.

"Would you mind if Irina stays with me tonight?" That was a surprising request, but who was I to discourage their new emotional bond? It might be good for them.

"Of course not," I answered Bella, giving an encouraging smile to Irina too. "We might as well go downstairs and get Carlisle and the others on speakerphone," I said to Eleazar. "You can fill Carlisle in on Bella's condition and we can throw around some Saturno theories."

"Good idea," Eleazar agreed. "I'll meet you down there." Eleazar left the room quickly and I turned back to Bella.

"Do you want help getting to sleep?" I asked her.

"No, thanks," she yawned. "I'm tired enough and the drugs Carmen gave me will knock me out soon. Besides, I want to talk to Irina for a little while."

"I'll leave you to it, then," I said. I turned for the door, but Bella called out for me again.

"Jasper?" I looked back at her and she extended her uninjured hand to me, silently beckoning me toward her. I could never deny her, so I moved to her position on the bed and took her outstretched hand. She tugged me closer and I gave into her feeble physical strength, leaning in until she had me where she wanted me. Bella stretched her neck up and her warm, soft lips touched mine. They lingered for only a moment, and then she pulled away.

"Thank you for coming after me," she said softly. I leaned in further and lightly kissed her cheek before repeating my promise in her ear.

"Always."

With that, I left Bella and Irina alone. As I made my way downstairs, I heard Irina begin what was sure to be a very interesting conversation.

"So, do you love him or not?"


	11. Kindred

♀︎(Bella's POV)

Whatever I had been expecting Irina to say first… that wasn't it. She really didn't waste any time. This could turn a little awkward. "Jasper?" I asked to clarify. The beautiful blonde vampire sitting on the bed beside me nodded once.

"Do you love Jasper?" She repeated her question.

"Yes," I answered her softly but surely.

"Do you still love Edward, too?" Irina pressed.

"Yes," I answered again. My voice sounded unsure, even to my ears.

"You're unsure?" Irina prodded.

"No," I tried to explain. "I mean… I don't know if I'm unsure or not." Well done, stupid human. Let's try that again. "Yes. I do still love Edward, but… I love Jasper too, and it's…" Say something! "It's… He's here… Jasper, I mean. Edward… When he left, I…" Never mind. Just shut up.

"Shh… It's okay," Irina surprised me by touching my shoulder soothingly. "I'm sorry if I'm coming on a little too strong. I'm not trying to interrogate you. I want to get to know you a little better, that's all. I'm just not used to interacting with humans like this."

"It's not you," I told her. "It's just difficult for me to explain, and those painkillers Carmen gave me are no help. They make humans drowsy and… not clearheaded." I couldn't help but laugh at my own pathetic word choice. At least I was making my point clear. Irina smiled understandingly at me.

"And let's not forget, you have every reason to be tired anyway," she said sadly, her smile fading even as she spoke. I was wearing a long-sleeved cotton nightgown of Esme's, so most of Laurent's bite marks were covered, but Irina's eyes still flickered over each one as if I was wearing nothing at all. "I'm so sorry, Bella," she whispered almost inaudibly.

"I'm sorry, too," I murmured tentatively. "I'm sorry it came to that. You shouldn't've had to choose between me and him."

"Stop it, Bella," Irina cut me off, shaking her head sharply. Her eyes came up to meet mine again, and she sighed heavily. "Alice warned me about this. You really are so quick to blame yourself for things beyond your control. What happened wasn't your fault, Bella. I really should have seen it coming… As much as a part of me loved Laurent, I think a part of me always knew…"

"That it couldn't work?" I finished her train of thought. "That it had to end at some point?" Irina simply nodded, lost in thought. "It's like… You can feel something there… something wrong… and you know you're powerless to make it right. And right from the start, you're wary… You warn yourself not to get too attached, because something about the whole deal is just too good to be true, and you're going to lose it at some point… and then you do. And suddenly you have this hole inside you where your heart used to be, and you just want to reach inside that hole and rip everything else out, just so there's nothing left inside you to hurt… because it hurts so bad. It hurts, and it doesn't matter how hard you tried to prepare yourself for it or how inevitable you thought it was.It was all for nothing, because you still feel so… there's no word for it… It aches and burns, and it washes out of your chest and drowns your whole body, and you can't breathe! You just want to be happy, again, but you can't breathe!"

"Bella!" Irina pulled me into her arms and held me while I sobbed hysterically into her shoulder. My own arms were wrapped tightly around my torso, and I was gasping for air as I cried.

"I can't breathe!" I sobbed into her cold, hard shoulder. "It just hurts! I can't breathe!"

"I know it hurts, Bella," Irina tried to soothe me, stroking my hair gently as she spoke. "I understand now. I know, Bella. I'm so sorry."

"Damn vampires, stop it!" I screamed and thrashed feebly in Irina's arms, trying to push her away. "Stop apologizing to me! None of you did this! James did this! Laurent did this! Edward did this!"

"Yes, Edward did this!" Irina sounded like she would be crying too, were it possible. Though I continued to struggle with her, she didn't let me go. "Name it, Bella!" She encouraged, "Name that pain! Call it what it is!"

"Edward, Edward, Edward, Edward!" I screamed incoherently and Irina had to grab hold of my wrists to keep me from punching the bedding with my fists and further injuring myself. I fought against her hold with every ounce of strength I had left in me, but she never released me. She held me until my screams of pain and rage dissolved into weak whimpers and sobs. "Edward did this to me," I cried softly. "He hurt me… It hurts so bad… Make it stop… Please…"

"Do you want me to get Jasper?" Irina asked me softly. Her grip on me finally relented and she began to slide out from under me. I threw myself at her and latched onto her with all the strength of a butterfly.

"No," I whimpered weakly. "Don't leave me. I… I don't want Jasper feeling this either… Don't… Please, don't…"

"Shh…" Irina murmured softly. She lifted me off the bed momentarily, pulling the covers back before helping me lay back down. She climbed into the bed beside me and pulled the covers up over both of us, and I instinctively curled into her. She wrapped her stone arms around me and just held me close until my breathing evened out again.

"I'm sorry I lost it like that," I murmured, somewhat embarrassed by my behavior.

"Don't be," Irina said softly. "I think you needed that. It might help."

"Do you need to lose it like that?" I mumbled wearily. The drugs Carmen gave me were starting to take effect, and crying so hard made me very sleepy.

"No," Irina said softly. "It does hurt terribly, but… Believe it or not, Bella, what you just did helped me a lot."

"What?" I responded incredulously. Well… I tried to. It came out more like a garbled yawn. Irina laughed softly.

"I don't need Jasper's extra sense to know that you're hurting more than I am, Bella," Irina murmured sadly, "and I'm hurting a lot… more than a lot… It's not the same, though. It is, but it isn't…"

"You're starting to sound like me," I laughed drowsily, trying to lighten Irina's mood a little. She did let out another soft laugh.

"I suppose I am," She said. I felt her hand stroking my hair again, and my eyelids started getting heavy. "Can I ask you the same questions again?" She asked me after a moment.

"Mmhmm?" I mumbled and made myself look up to meet her eyes.

"Do you love Jasper?" Irina asked me.

"Yes," I murmured wearily. I lost the battle to keep my head up then. I let it rest on Irina's shoulder again.

"Do you love Edward?" Was now really the best time to ask me that again? I yawned and sighed heavily.

"I don't want to," I admitted to Irina. "I don't want to keep hurting like this."

"You don't want to, but you still do?" Irina prodded softly. I almost missed the question. My eyes were getting impossibly heavy, and my mind was checking out too.

"How do I stop?" I managed to mumble sleepily.

"I wish I could answer that, Bella." That was the last thing I heard before sleep finally claimed me. "I wish I knew."


	12. The Shield

♀︎(Bella's POV)

I wasn't surprised when I woke up and felt a cold, hard body next to me. What did surprise me was the fact that their touch was… energizing me? I rolled over slowly and ended up looking into Jasper's dark honey eyes.

"Where's Irina?" I murmured drowsily and yawned. "Is she okay?" Jasper smiled at me and brushed some of my hair back from my face.

"Your concern for others is truly boundless," He whispered in the gentle cadences of centuries long gone. His gaze was full of wonder and adoration as he looked back at me, and I had to wonder what I'd done to deserve the affection of such a majestic creature. "She's fine, Bella. Doing well as can be expected, at least. She's downstairs with Tanya now. How are you feeling, sweetheart?"

"Tired," I mumbled.

"Understandable," Jasper chuckled softly. "I would have let you sleep more, but we do still have to keep up appearances with your father."

"Oh!" I gasped, my heavy eyes snapping open and automatically looking out the window. It was already dark, outside. "What time is it?"

"Easy, Bella," Jasper soothed me with his voice and his gift at the same time. "It's only eight o'clock. Charlie thinks you're having dinner with me and Emmett before you come home. I called him while Irina was up here with you, and I explained your broken hand and toes already: While we were playing baseball, you made a bet with Emmett that you could catch an easy pop-fly, but…"

"Let me guess," I grumbled. "I ran after the ball, but tripped and fell on my hand?"

"Close," Jasper said with a wry smile. "You just forgot what made you trip."

"It wasn't just my own two feet?" I mumbled, trying to swallow another yawn. Jasper grinned.

"Not this time," he teased. "That wouldn't be enough to break two of your toes as well. You weren't watching where you were going and tripped over a big rock on the ground. You ran into it hard enough to fracture your toes, and then you fell on your hand."

"Perfect," I grumbled sarcastically. "Except for one point: Charlie is going to shoot Emmett. You told him I got hurt because of a bet! Wait… What were the terms?"

"That's the part that is going to spare Emmett from having to fake a gunshot wound," Jasper chuckled, still smiling. "If you won, he wasn't allowed to watch a Bears game for the rest of the season. Since you lost, for the next two months, anytime Alice wants to drag you off on a shopping trip, you have to go." Okay… I had to laugh too.

"That's perfect!" I giggled. "I assume most of these 'shopping trips' will just be covers?"

"Of course," Jasper said with a conspiratorial wink. "Alice may insist on at least one or two real shopping excursions, but we have more important things to deal with, as she well knows."

"And I guess Charlie won't be too angry about the bet if I was 'taking one for the team'," I added, rolling my eyes at my own ridiculous pun. "So… When is Alice going to get here?" I asked, my voice clearly conveying that I was asking about all the others with her too.

"Eleazar called Carlisle before I called Charlie," Jasper explained. "We all spoke to him on the speakerphone downstairs while you were up here speaking with Irina. Alice had an unclear vision of Edward holed up somewhere in Michigan, so they were looking for him there. They were following a few-days-old trail when we reached them. After we explained what happened here, they decided to end their search and come straight here. They should be here by about this time, tomorrow." I nodded slowly, trying to absorb everything Jasper was telling me. As I became more alert, I became more aware of the continually increasing level of pain in right hand and foot. I pulled my braced hand out from under the covers to get a better look at it, and Jasper's contented smile fell.

"Are you in much pain?" He asked me softly, watching as I absentmindedly fingered the brace on my hand. "Do you need more medicine?"

"It hurts, but it's bearable," I murmured thoughtfully. "I've certainly had worse. My foot actually hurts a little worse."

"That makes sense," Jasper said, his voice equally as pensive. "The bone damage to your hand and foot are about the same, but you probably landed more kicks trying to fight Laurent off. He bit your right wrist, and with the exception of the bite on your hip, all the others are above your waist. His position over you would have smothered your punches too much. You probably had a lot more leverage with your legs."

"It's probably a miracle I didn't hurt myself more than this," I groaned, throwing the soft covers of Jasper's bed completely off me and sitting up to look at my injured leg. "You'd better put all that war experience to good use and train me to fight properly after I'm changed." There was a slightly too long beat of silence and I looked back at Jasper. He was staring at me with a somewhat guarded expression that I couldn't understand.

"So…" He began slowly. "You do still want to be changed?"

"Well… Yes," I murmured tentatively, still confused by his change in behavior. "I mean, I've already been bitten six times without changing. That's getting a little ridiculous. And with all this 'Child of Saturn' stuff, it kind of seems like I should. More than that, thinking of you, Alice, Irina, Carmen… everyone… I couldn't bear to lose all of you again. I love all of you. Especially you, Jasper. I… I want to stay with you. All of you. Forever. As long as you'll have me?" Jasper's expression was still guarded, still closed off to me, so I had no way to gauge his reaction to my words. Hadn't he heard Irina and me talking? Didn't he know I loved him? That I wanted to let go of Edward and give my whole heart to him? Wasn't that what he wanted?

There was another second of silence, and then Jasper's smooth mask fell away and all my questions were answered.

It was difficult to tell what hit me first, the veritable tidal wave of love and joy that Jasper released, or Jasper himself. Either way, I suddenly found myself on my back again with Jasper carefully holding himself over me, only letting me feel just enough of his weight against me. His cool lips claimed mine in a searing, ecstatic kiss, and the world around us melted away. Jasper was carefully holding my right hand still, so I wouldn't further injure myself, but I was still able to grab a fistful of his hair with my left hand and pull him even closer. The kiss only ended when I needed to breathe. Even then, Jasper moved to leave a trail of open-mouthed kisses along my jaw and down my neck, carefully avoiding the spot where Laurent had bitten me.

"Why are you still waiting for me to reject you, Bella?" He whispered breathlessly between kisses. "It's always there, this part of you that is always braced in defense, waiting for a blow that isn't coming. I'm not going to push you away, Bella. I never will. I know it's in your nature to shield, Bella, but please… Please trust me enough to let me in."

"But I do trust you Jasper," I gasped, tugging his face up to meet mine. His eyes were swirling pools of onyx as he gazed back at me. I had to make him understand. "You know I trust you. That isn't the issue. I don't mean to block you out in any way. I just…"

"Bella," Jasper whispered, holding up his weight with one arm while he brought his other hand up to touch my face, lightly grazing my heated lips with his cool thumb. "Say the words right now. Look in my eyes and tell me what you've already told me once more. Just say it simply and clearly, with no filter." His words were somewhat ambiguous, but I still knew exactly what he wanted. He absolutely did hear me tell Irina that I loved him. Moments before, I told him I loved him… along with everyone else. I looked into his eyes and tried to say the three words by themselves, with no filter, but the words got caught in my chest and it was suddenly hard to breathe. Jasper sent me a wave of calm and rolled off of me, pulling me into his arms and holding me while I gasped for breath.

"That's the shield I'm talking about, Bella," he murmured softly, stroking my hair and sending soothing waves into me while my breathing quieted again. "Sweetheart, I know you love me," He whispered with such intense feeling, I thought he would cry if he could. "I feel it all the time and I've heard you say it, but you're still afraid to say it to my face. You're still afraid to say the words without a buffer. Understand this though, Bella: I want nothing more than to spend forever with you, and I feel truly honored that you want to spend eternity with me. The moment you want to be changed, say the word, and it will be done. I only hope…"

"What, Jasper?" I sniffed. "What do you want? I'm so sorry. I'll do anything. Please…" Jasper gently pushed me back until he could meet my watery eyes with his. He paused, then he leaned in and gently kissed away the warm tears on my cheeks before recapturing my eyes again.

"All I want is your happiness," He whispered, his rich, honeyed voice music to my ears. "I only hope you and I can get through this before you change. I don't know what it would do to you, how it would manifest in this life… Being a newborn vampire is difficult enough, and with your being a Saturno on top of that… I just don't want you to hurt anymore, Bella. My word still stands: The moment you ask to be changed, you will be. I'm just worried about you, sweetheart, that's all. I love you more than anything, and I just want you to be happy."

I wanted to return the sentiment: I love you. I wanted to say those words, plain and simple, out loud. I could think them. I could scream in the safe haven of my mind, but for some reason I couldn't force them across my lips, so I had to make my lips do something meaningful. I tilted my head up until I could touch Jasper's cool, marble lips with mine. He responded immediately, passionately. He pulled me on top of him again, being careful of my broken hand and toes, and he returned my kiss fervently. His tongue pressed against my lips, requesting access, and I was quick to give in. Anything he wanted from me, I wanted to give, and I knew the reverse was also true, so I would not ask to be changed until I could give him that one thing he wanted, that one thing we both needed. Before I sought forever, I had to say aloud the words my mind had running on repeat:

I love you, Jasper.


	13. Venom and Small Victories

♀︎(Bella's POV)

When Jasper brought me back to Charlie's, there were still a few holes in our cover story to fill. Thankfully, Jasper handled each slip flawlessly: Who braced my hand and toes? He did. Carlisle walked him through it over the phone and promised to check on me as soon as he arrived the next day. What happened to my clothes? Emmett offered to wash them himself, because he felt guilty for roping me into the bet and was trying to make up for it without calling it off. A deal's a deal and all. Alice would find a look-alike of my destroyed sweater to pass off for the real article later. Charlie wouldn't notice the difference.

As soon as Jasper and I were safely inside my room, I had to laugh a little. I used to reprimand Edward for messing with other humans, but I just found it hilarious. Humans really were so easily manipulated... Wait a minute… When did I start thinking of humans as a separate species from myself?

"Well you really aren't completely human, are you?" Jasper chuckled wryly. Apparently, I spoke that last question aloud. "You're a Saturno in human form," Jasper continued matter-of-factly. "There's a difference. To classify you as a 'human' is probably incorrect. You're more of an… underdeveloped supernatural creature?" There was a beat of silence while Jasper and I each processed that name, and then we were both laughing again.

"I still can't wrap my head around that," I said after we both collected ourselves. "I'm used to knowing a lot of supernatural creatures by now, but I have trouble thinking of myself as being one too… Then again, that would explain why I never felt like I could really fit in with other humans. All along, I was associating with the wrong species." After another round of laughter, Jasper pulled me into his arms and kissed the top of my head.

"You know where you belong now," He murmured into my hair, never releasing me. In fact, he hugged me even closer. I easily could have stayed there all night, but Charlie came knocking at my bedroom door a moment later. Trying to keep the peace, Jasper left quickly after that… Of course, he just jumped back in through my window once Charlie was asleep.

Jasper kept my dreams away all night. I was beyond grateful. Despite the lack of troubling dreams, I was instantly tense when I woke up. The rest of the Cullens were coming. All of them but Edward at least… My stomach was in knots at the thought. Of course, Jasper noticed.

"Don't do this again, Bella," He murmured softly in my ear, lightly stroking my hair with his cool fingers. "Carlisle, Esme, Alice, Rosalie… They're your family, Bella. They all love you and want to help you. That's why they're coming. Please don't be afraid." Unsure of how to respond to that, I quickly changed the subject.

"What about the wolves?" I asked, my voice cracking. There was a tingling, raw feeling in my throat, probably caused by all the screaming and crying the day before. "How do we explain all this to them? My being a Saturno and everything? They won't understand…" Jasper cut off my fretful rambling with a quick kiss.

"Bella, if anyone can understand your situation, the pack should," he whispered in such a way as to warn me of Charlie's close proximity. "They're part-humans too… I need to go, Bella. I'll come pick you up in a few hours." I sat up to give Jasper a quick goodbye kiss. Two full minutes later, he bolted out my window when Charlie knocked lightly on my door. I rubbed my face into my pillow a couple times to cover the evidence.

"Yeah?" I called with a fairly convincing fake yawn, my hoarse voice conveniently cracking again. Charlie opened the door slowly and peered into my room without walking in.

"Erm… Sorry if I woke you, Bells," he began awkwardly. "I thought I heard you moving in here and I made… Well, I tried to make us some French toast. It's a little on the soggy side, but not too bad… If you're hungry?" Oh, no. Charlie tried to cook for me. That was the Chief Swan equivalent of 'we need to talk'.

"I'll be right down, Dad, thanks." Charlie made a mercifully quick exit after that. I tried to clear my head for whatever was coming. Surely it wouldn't be too bad… Would it?

When I walked into the kitchen a minute later, Charlie was absentmindedly picking at the plate of soppy food in front of him, his thoughts clearly elsewhere. He didn't look up at me until I sat down and forced a bite of my own breakfast.

"You and Jasper seem to be getting along well, Bells," he began tentatively. Should've seen that coming. "Are you two…? Well, are you and Jasper…?" As Charlie continued to mumble awkwardly, my face reddened and I started to sweat. I decided to risk taking the lead in the conversation.

"Dating?" I offered tentatively. Charlie mumbled something unintelligible and nodded once. 'Dating' was probably the wrong word for it, but it was the safest one in that moment. I nodded. "Yes." Charlie looked like he was about to say something else, but I cut him off. "Look, Dad, I know what you're going to say, I began. It took a lot of effort to say the next word, but I forced it out. "Edward. He's… He left, Dad. You know that. He didn't want to be with me anymore. That was hard to get over. I'm sorry you had to see… the way I reacted… but it's not the same with Jasper. Before he split with Alice, we didn't really take the time to get to know each other very well, but… It's early, but it feels like it could be the real deal, Dad, and Alice is okay with it. All the Cullens are."

"Including Edward?" Charlie asked, surprised.

"Probably not," I admitted, ignoring the way my stomach flipped when Charlie mentioned Edward again. "Jasper told you Edward isn't really in contact with the rest of the family, remember? He went off on his own."

"Right," Charlie conceded. "Jasper did mention that… among other things." Charlie muttered that last part almost inaudibly, so I pretended I didn't hear him, as he probably intended. For the first time that morning, he looked me straight it the eye. "Are you sure about this, Bells?" He asked me in earnest. "Are you sure this isn't just… a rebound? I just don't want to see you hurt again…"

"I'll be fine, Dad," I interrupted before he could go any further, then I made a move to change the subject. "I need to get cleaned up. Carlisle and the rest of the Cullens are due to get here in a few hours. Jasper's coming to pick me up."

"Yeah, okay," Charlie almost sighed, clearly relieved to be done with our 'talk'. I took full advantage and made a quick exit.

Sure enough, a few hours later Jasper arrived in Carlisle's Mercedes. My stomach twisted in knots when I first saw the car, but only Jasper came. As soon as we were both in the car, Jasper grabbed my unharmed left hand and began combating my escalating nerves with waves of calm. "You have nothing to worry about, Bella," he reminded me once more. I nodded mutely in response.

When we arrived at the house and no one immediately came charging out, I assumed they were wary of overwhelming me. It was almost like the first time I met them all over again. They didn't want to startle the delicate human. I entirely human after all, but I was still the physically and emotionally fragile one, still the weak link they had to be gentle with, especially in my current state, both literally and figuratively broken. What a great way to start over…

"Bella?" Jasper had already opened my door was holding out his hand to help me out of the car. I guess he realized carrying me wasn't a good idea. I needed to feel somewhat in control of myself. I needed some sense of stability. Still, Jasper looked worried. I barely felt the waves of calm he was still projecting. Again, he was backing off a little, letting me proceed at my own pace. I took his waiting hand and he helped me to my feet. We walked up to the front door at human pace and I drew one more calming breath, making my sore throat sting a little worse. I looked up at Jasper and nodded. He opened the door.

Eleazar, Carmen, Tanya, Kate, and Irina were all standing off to one side, in the dining room entryway. I could feel them all watching me, but my eyes only passed over them for a second. About fifteen feet away from them, five more vampires stood at the outer perimeter of the living room: Carlisle, Esme, Rosalie, Emmett, and Alice. Emmett, of course, had arrived ahead of the others. His position among the others just made them more approachable. Moving quickly over him, my eyes settled on Alice first. Even to my eyes, she seemed to be straining to keep still and quiet. While I was still ridiculously nervous, I found myself holding back a wry laugh.

"Alice, you weren't this patient when we first met," I reminded her softly. That was all the permission she needed. She sprang at me too quickly for my eyes to follow and she was suddenly hugging me. I tensed involuntarily, but a slightly stronger wave of ease from Jasper helped me relax in her embrace.

"I'm so sorry, Bella," she began without releasing me. "I should have seen it! I should have been watching you more closely! I knew it was stupid to listen to Edward!" I tensed again and Alice instantly realized her mistake. She fell silent and stepped back from me, smiling apologetically.

"It's okay," I said in a voice that would be inaudible to human ears. Though I knew everyone in the room still heard me, I tried again. "None of what happened was your fault, Alice," I said. "It's okay."

"No, it isn't." Carlisle spoke up. "We left you in this mess, Bella. We should have realized it wasn't safe for you. It won't happen again. We will all swear to that… How are you feeling, Bella?" Carlisle's gaze had wandered to my braced hand. His eyes flickered down to glance at my feet too. I was wearing an old sneaker on my uninjured foot, but I wore a house shoe on my right. Carlisle's topaz eyes were full of concern when they met mine again. I paused a moment before answering his question, taking careful inventory of any physical pains in my body so I could give an honest answer.

"Actually, I'm not feeling much pain at all," I said, my voice conveying my own surprise. I'd been so busy worrying about seeing everyone again that I'd mostly ignored my physical condition. I really was in surprisingly little pain… except… "Honestly, this sore throat I got from screaming so much yesterday hurts worse than any of the bites or broken bones. I know that sounds strange, but it's true."

"Carlisle, what's wrong?" Jasper's sudden question almost made me jump. Carlisle looked at Jasper for a moment, but made no immediate answer. I wasn't the only one in the room looking between Carlisle and Jasper then, waiting for an explanation. Esme, Alice, Rosalie, Emmett, Eleazar, Carmen, Tanya, Kate, and Irina were all statue-still and silent. Nine pairs of dark golden eyes were trained carefully on Carlisle and Jasper. Carlisle looked back at me.

"Why don't you let me take a look, Bella?" He asked me, and even I could tell his voice was forced calm. "Make sure everything is healing right?" There was a moment of tense, ringing silence following Carlisle's request. Why was he avoiding Jasper's question? Thoroughly confused and nervous as hell, I followed Carlisle up to his office in compliant silence. No one followed behind us.

"Are you in any additional pain now, Bella?" He asked me as soon as his office door was closed behind us. I looked up at him, confused. "Well, you just walked up two flights of stairs without assistance," he explained. "Your right foot is injured, so it's a reasonable question." I blinked and looked down at my injured foot. What the…?

"Why didn't that hurt?" I asked dumbly, not really expecting an answer but not knowing what else to say.

"That's what has me puzzled, I'm afraid," Carlisle answered anyway. "I do have a theory, but we'll get to that in a moment. Come sit down, Bella?" Carlisle guided me over to the large chair behind his desk and helped me sit down while I tried to get control of my suddenly raging nerves. What was wrong with me?

"Let me take a look at your hand, first, Bella?" I nodded torpidly and held out my injured right hand. It only took Carlisle a moment to gingerly but dexterously remove Eleazar's brace, then he was inspecting my bare and surprisingly unbruised hand with feather-light touches. I felt very little pain throughout the entire process until…

"Ow," I flinched and reflexively pulled my hand back. Carlisle gave me a brief, apologetic smile. "Sorry, Bella. It was the only way to tell," he said in a strangely dark tone of voice that didn't suit him.

"Tell what?" I asked. Carlisle sighed and looked at me gravely.

"Bella, do you even realize just how much pressure I was applying to your hand when I hurt you?" I was growing more confused by the second. Carlisle grabbed a pen out of the cup on his desktop and held it up in front of me pointedly. I nodded to affirm that he had my attention, and he promptly snapped the pen between two of his fingers. My mouth fell open in shock and I had to force it shut.

"Y-you did that to me?" I spluttered. Carlisle kept his eyes on mine while he reached for my injured hand again. I instinctively tensed a little, but I didn't flinch away from his touch.

"Not where the bone is fractured, if it is still fractured," he began. "This spot where both Laurent and James bit you," he continued, "where the layered scars have made your skin harder and cooler." Carlisle traced one finger over the crisscrossing scars on my hand and understanding finally started sinking in.

"You had to press harder there to hurt me, because that part of my skin is stronger." I said. Carlisle nodded once and he glanced down at my right foot. He gave me a quick, inquiring glance. I nodded again. With my permission, he removed my house shoe and unbraced my foot too. It was also unbruised, but as there were no bite scars there, Carlisle kept his touch gentle.

"You sounded unsure about the break in my hand?" I asked. "Is my foot the same?" Carlisle nodded distractedly, apparently deep in thought. When he didn't speak for a moment, I couldn't resist the urge to ask another question. "How could they have healed so quickly?" I asked. Carlisle eyed me warily for a moment, then he pulled up another chair so he could sit level with me.

"Bella, I think it may have to do with the venom lingering in your system," he said slowly, delicately.

"The venom was sucked out," I automatically argued, just for something to do while my mind spun out of control. "The bite from James and all the bites from Laurent… The venom was sucked back out."

"Yet areas of your skin are harder and cooler, more like ours," Carlisle countered. "Your scarred skin seems to be stronger and more durable, too. How do you explain that without assuming venom?" That threw me through a loop. Carlisle was right, of course. Venom was the only explanation that seemed logical…

"I don't understand," I whispered, perplexed. "How…?"

"I don't want to make you too uncomfortable, Bella," Carlisle began, "but I'd like to take a look at the other bite scars too, if you wouldn't mind?" That brought some long overdo color to my cheeks. For Carlisle to see the other bites, my sweater had to come off. He is a doctor, I told myself, and I slowly made myself stand up. I pulled off my sweater and turned my focus to the various paintings in the office while Carlisle inspected the other bites. I was looking at the one picturing the three Volturi elders when he spoke again.

"You can cover up again, Bella," he said in a politely indifferent voice, handing me my discarded sweater. Once I was fully dressed again, I made myself meet Carlisle's gaze and I instantly regretted it. His gaze was penetrating and inadvertently dazzling as his eyes locked onto mine for a moment. "Describe your sore throat to me, Bella?" He asked, his gaze softening slightly though his eyes didn't leave mine. "Is it scratchy, dry, stinging, burning…?"

"Not really scratchy," I answered promptly. "Dry, stinging, and burning. It's… tingling and raw."

"Does it sting more when you breathe deeply?" Carlisle pressed.

"Yes," I answered. Taking a deep breath to check, then repeating my answer with more certainty. "Yes."

"Hold your unscarred hand up to your face and take another deep breath," Carlisle instructed and I complied. I covered my nose and mouth with my left hand and drew another deep breath. The burning sensation in my throat increased sharply and I flinched. Before I realized what was happening, Carlisle's hands were pinning my arms to my sides. I blinked and gazed up at him, startled. For a moment his eyes searched mine, and then his grip slackened.

"I apologize for that, Bella," he said slowly, "but there's something you need to see. I'm going to let go of you, but I want you to keep your hands down at your sides. Understand?" I nodded fervently and Carlisle released me completely. "Come with me, Bella," he instructed and he led me out of his office. I followed him down the hall and, to my immense surprise, into Alice's enormous bathroom. "Look at yourself in the mirror, Bella," Carlisle instructed gently. Too gently. "Look at your eyes." I obediently turned to look at my own reflection and I gasped at the sight.

"My eyes are darker," I whispered incredulously. "They're still my usual brown, but… It's a darker shade of brown. It's not a huge difference, but it's noticeable…" I turned back to Carlisle then, my strangely dark eyes surely conveying the fear that was suddenly shooting through me. Everything clicked into place then, though I didn't want to believe it. "It's not a sore throat," I said. "It's… I'm…"

"Thirsty," Jasper's somber voice startled me. I spun around to see him standing in the bathroom doorway and my eyes automatically fell on the scars on his forehead. A small part of my mind registered that they were a little more visible to me than they were two days ago, but the larger part of my mind went off in an entirely different direction.

"Of course," I whispered. "That's it." Jasper's deeply concerned expression morphed into one of confusion and I tried to explain my sudden tangent. "Jasper, that's why you had so much trouble getting control of your thirst," I said. "That century of war and feeding on humans was no help, but… It's not how many humans you've bitten. While it could be your gift causing problems, you've had too much practice shutting it down... It's how many times you were bitten. It's all the extra venom."

"I never thought of it that way," Carlisle murmured thoughtfully, "but you may have something there, Bella. If the low level of venom trapped in your body can make you mildly thirsty, it could easily be argued that a vampire could absorb too much venom if repeatedly bitten after their change, making them abnormally thirsty… It's certainly a plausible theory."

"So…" Jasper began, looking between me and Carlisle. "I had all that trouble with control because I have excess venom in me?"

"Given this new evidence from Bella's condition, that could very likely be the case, Jasper," Carlisle said. "Even in a case like Bella's, where most of the venom is removed, a small amount gets trapped inside every time. That explains Bella's rapid healing, her 'sore throat' and darker eyes. It could explain the fact that she was able to project a gift she'd just discovered so well right after Laurent's attack. That new dose of venom made her gifts stronger and more controllable. The same thing probably happened to you without you or Maria even realizing it. She kept you longer than any other newborn she created because, in many ways, you just grew continually stronger. Physical and gift-related strength, thirst, our senses… It all goes back to venom. It's the venom that makes it all happen."

"Does that mean that Bella will have more trouble with control after she's changed?" Jasper asked, looking at me anxiously.

"No," Alice chirped, suddenly appearing by Jasper's shoulder. "The opposite. Experiencing thirst while she's still part-human means more time to adjust to the feeling." Alice looked at me and smiled confidently. "You'll be absolutely fine," she assured me. "As difficult as this all may be now, it will make your newborn phase a breeze."

"Vision?" I asked her.

"You may be a Saturno, but I can still see you," she said half-teasingly. "In fact, I've never seen you quite this clearly."

"Good," Jasper said. "Can you see how to handle her thirst now? We can't expect her to hunt while she's still part-human and we certainly don't want her to end up biting herself for lack of any other option."

"Very rare steaks will take the edge off," Alice answered quickly. "Enough to make her eyes return to their usual shade of brown. It's going to be a balancing act, though," she added. "Including lightly cooked meats in her diet will help, but consuming too much iron will enrich her own blood, making her thirst flare up more frequently. It's not like she can escape the smell of her own blood, after all. Thankfully, she's relatively numb to how edible her own body smells. Other humans will be a little more difficult. How were things with Charlie this morning, Bella?" Alice asked me.

"Nothing really out of the ordinary," I said. "Not that I noticed, anyway, but I was a little preoccupied this morning."

"You probably didn't get close enough to him," Carlisle interjected. "If your thirst can be described as a 'sore throat', the effect of the venom on your sensory perception is probably too minimal to cause a problem unless you're in very close proximity with another human. Your eyes didn't even darken very much until you brought your hand right up to your face. That's why I pulled your hands away from your mouth. I knew better, but for a moment I couldn't help but worry that you might bite yourself."

"I'd sooner try hunting," I said grimly.

"The elk would win," I heard Emmett chuckle. He, Rosalie, and Esme appeared behind Jasper and Alice even as he spoke. "And bears and lions are way out of your league," he added with another snicker. Rosalie elbowed him in the ribs at the same time Esme smacked his arm. Emmett just laughed harder.

"Do you really think it wise to antagonize a Saturno, Emmett?" Jasper interjected tauntingly. "Much less a Saturno with a certain pack of wolves for friends?"

"Please," Emmett guffawed. "I could take out those fleabags with one arm chained behind my back."

"Don't call them that!" I growled before I could stop myself. Truly growled. I clamped one of my hands over my mouth, but too late. Everyone was staring at me. Rosalie looked shocked, Esme looked startled, Alice looked unsurprised, and Emmett looked… impressed.

"Sister," he cooed teasingly before yanking me into one of his signature bear hugs, pulling my feet clean off the floor. "I'm so proud of you!" The ridiculous cooing continued. "Baby sister's first growl! That was so cute!"

"How's this for cute?" I growled before boldly biting his granite neck. While being careful not to break my teeth, I bit hard enough to stun him into releasing me. Emmett took a quick step back and I fell to the floor. Jasper was quick to join me. He collapsed to the floor positively roaring with laughter.

"Bella!" Esme was clearly shooting for scolding, but her barely restrained giggles ruined the effect. Alice was laughing too, while Rosalie and Carlisle just watched the spectacle in relative shock. A moment later, Emmett was laughing right along with us. He even helped Jasper pull me back to my feet.

"Touché, little sis," he chuckled. "You win that one, but this means you're fair game now." Leave it to Emmett to congratulate me and impishly threaten me, all in the same breath. "Welcome to the family."

"Yeah, you even think of messing with her and see what happens to your Jeep," Jasper growled playfully.

"Hey, wheels are off limits!" Emmett protested. "You know the rules!"

"Rules?" I asked.

"Later, Bella," Carlisle interrupted the merriment then. Even though his voice was firm, a warm smile lingered on his face. "We really should tend to your thirst before it gets worse, and I think I should take an X-ray of your hand and foot. They seem to have already healed, but I can't be completely sure if they healed properly. We need to make sure you're taken care of right now… We can fill you in on the pranking rules later."

"Yes!" Emmett cheered in response to Carlisle's last remark and everyone else laughed. Even Rosalie giggled softly.

"Okay, what did we miss?" Kate demanded impatiently, appearing in the hall with Tanya, Irina, Carmen, and Eleazar trailing behind her. "We heard everything, but we clearly missed an essential visual. What did Bella do?" Kate demanded and another round of musical laughter began, even louder than the first.

There was still a difficult road ahead, but the fight would be easier, more worthwhile... There was something worth fighting for.


	14. Iago

♀︎(Bella's POV)

I was used to waking up in Jasper's protective embrace. I even spent one painful and awkward night in Irina's arms... Somehow, I just wasn't ready to wake up and find Alice sitting next to me.

"Alice! What…? What's going on? Where's Jasper?"

"He's out hunting, I think. I'm not exactly sure."

"You aren't sure? Alice, can't you see him?"

"I'm focusing on something else right now, Bella. I'm not watching Jasper. Whatever he's doing, he'll be fine, and I'm sure he'll be back, soon."

Alice had yet to look at me. She was just sitting statue-still beside me, staring off into space. I knew that look.

"What are you watching? You're so focused…?" Alice blinked and finally met my eyes with hers: Pitch black. She was clearly thirsty, but just as clearly preoccupied with something else.

"It's Edward," She said softly. For a moment, I forgot how to breathe. Alice waited patiently, her eyes never leaving my face. When my heart rate steadied, she continued. "I don't want you to panic, Bella, but you need to know this: He's coming here. He should be here within the next ten days or so. I can't see why he's coming. That's what I'm looking for. Edward knows my blind spots. He knows what I can and can't see. I can tell he wants to speak with you. I keep seeing you two together in the woods, but it gets fuzzy beyond that."

"W-why would he want to talk to me?" I gasped, despite the knot in my chest. "He doesn't want... I mean, he didn't want… Why?"

"I don't know, Bella," Alice repeated. "That's why Jasper stepped out for a minute. Needless to say, he's not happy. Something wrong, Bella? Other than what I just told you?" The spike in my heart rate must have given me away.

"Um… Sorry, Alice. It's just… we haven't really talked about that since you've been back. Me and Jasper, I mean..."

"Oh, Bella, don't even start!" Alice interrupted, rolling her eyes slightly. "All those horror stories about girlfriends and ex-girlfriends don't apply here. I'm the one who had the vision. I saw all this coming, and it's really okay. I'll meet my new mate soon, too."

"You know who it is?!" I gasped, shocked.

"Not exactly," Alice amended. "I had a new vision yesterday. For the first time, I got a clear look at his face, and I know his name is Irwin. For now, that's all I have to go on, but that's how I first saw Jasper, so…"

"Soon, though? Do you know when exactly?"

"No. Sometime within the next couple months, I think. The details aren't set in stone, yet. All that aside though, Bella… Jasper was an important phase of my life. I'll always love him, but he found a better match in you, and I'll find a better match in Irwin. I was what Jasper needed for a while, and he was what I needed, but now our needs have changed. I need… whatever Irwin has to offer, and Jasper needs you now."

"And I need him." I whispered, on the verge of tears.

"I know you do," Alice said to me, smiling softly. She pulled me closer to her with one hand and kissed my cheek lightly. "Be good to him, sis," she said. "You both mean a lot to me." After that, Alice stared off into space again. I buried my face in my pillow with a heavy sigh. Edward left me, and I chose Jasper. How could I face Edward again?

When Jasper wasn't back three hours later, Alice told me to go meet Charlie at the diner for lunch. "Rare steak," she reminded me. "Don't let yourself get too thirsty." She said that while bounding out my window and diving into the shadows, avoiding the unusual amount of sunlight outside. That piqued my curiosity. If my thirst was growing steadily worse, and my gifts were growing stronger… I walked over to my window and held my scarred wrist in the direct sunlight.

"Carlisle will probably want to see this," I murmured to myself when my scarred skin glistened like snow in the sunlight. It wasn't full-on vampire sparkle, but the effect was definitely too conspicuous for other humans to see. I would have to cover up all my scars.

Despite the sun, it was early February Forks, so I didn't look too conspicuous when I walked into the diner wearing a lightweight turtleneck sweater and gloves. Charlie was already waiting at our usual table. I started toward him, and that's when the trouble began. Walking by a couple full tables along the wall, I caught a whiff of something that made my throat burn. It was a very pleasant smell, but I couldn't put a name to it. I just knew I wanted to taste it. I looked down at the tables, wondering what food the people there were eating, but they were still reading their menus.

"Steak, please," I said to the waitress standing conveniently close to Charlie's table. "Rare… and a side salad, please," I added, to give some illusion of normalcy. I sat down across from Charlie, deliberately putting as much distance between us as possible while still sharing the same table. I fleetingly thought back to those first weeks with Edward and realized how difficult those days in the cafeteria really must have been for him, for all the Cullens, really… Here I wasn't even a true vampire yet, and I was already dodging humans due to my thirst. Jasper… Suddenly, I had a whole new appreciation for his struggle, and I loved him even more for it.

"Same, but make mine medium," Charlie said to the waitress. When she was out of earshot, Charlie raised an inquisitive eyebrow at me. "Since when are you much of a steak-eater, Bells?" He asked. "Much less rare steaks… Medium is as red as I'll go." I already knew how to answer that one.

"Last night I told Carlisle about how tired I've been lately, and he said to increase my protein and iron intake. Rare steaks are supposedly a better source for both, as opposed to overcooked versions. Don't know if it's true…" I tried to add that last part on casually and noncommittally. I was getting better at lying, but I was still learning the real art of it. Emmett made sure to give me one key pointer: Always water down a lie with something true or neutral. At any rate, Charlie seemed to buy it.

"I guess I should have thought of that," he laughed. "You still won't catch me eating a steak that's still kicking, but I guess it makes sense. I won't judge."

"Sure you won't, Dad," I said, rolling my eyes as a way of avoiding eye contact. "That's not your job anyway."

"Hey, don't you start on my job, Bells!" Charlie laughed again. "I've been working hard lately, and you know it. That bear is still causing trouble, after all…" Charlie continued on with his update, but he lost me at the word 'bear'. Poor, oblivious human. If only he knew…

Unkindness may do much, and his unkindness may defeat my life, but never taint my love.

I opened to a random page of Othello, just for something to do while I waited for Jasper to come. It was almost twilight outside, and I had yet to see him. I found Desdemona's monologue and that line jumped out at me.

"Please don't tell me you're lingering over the death scene again, darling Desdemon," Jasper said softly as he leapt in through my window. I forced a smile at his little joke and dropped the book, letting it fall shut on the bed beside me. Jasper walked forward and held out his hand for me to take, pulling me gently to my feet when I did so. "I'm sorry if my behavior upset you, Bella," he said in earnest. "I'm just worried… and angry, though not with you. When Alice told me… All I could think of was how he hurt you, and how much I wanted to prevent such a thing from happening again. I don't know what Alice may or may not have told you, but I went looking for Edward, trying to intercept him before he could get here. After a few hours of running, I decided I had no right to keep you and Edward apart. It needs to be your choice. Though I may not like it, I won't interfere with that."

That was a lot to process. To buy myself time, I took a step forward and buried my face in Jasper's stone chest. He wrapped his arms around me automatically, and I just let him feel everything I was feeling, knowing words would fail me. Still, after a moment, I felt the need to try.

"I can't say I'm surprised, Jasper. I'm not angry, either. I understand it, but I am glad you stopped. I don't know how I'm going to do this, but I know I need to." I was aware of Jasper's grip on me growing slowly tighter, and I knew why, even without him telling me. The problem was that I didn't know what the right thing to say to him was. I settled for letting him feel all my love for him. Words might betray me, but my feelings couldn't lie, as he knew all too well.

"I know you do," was all he whispered to me. Apparently, even he was at a loss for what to say.

Eight days later, I was sitting in the Cullen living room, feeling unbearably out-of-place. All the vampires around me were walking on eggshells. They all seemed to think I would shatter into a million pieces if they so much as breathed on me. Not much was being said aloud, but I didn't really need Jasper's help to figure out what everyone was feeling. Esme's face hid nothing. She was watching me with open concern and pain in her eyes. Emmett kept clenching and unclenching his massive fists, seemingly unaware of it, and he was clearly agitated. Tanya was sitting alone by the back windows, staring off into space. Alice… Had a headache, or so it seemed. I didn't think such a thing was possible for vampires, but that's the conclusion anyone looking at her would draw. She was massaging her temples with her fingers, her brow was furrowed in concentration, and she seemed uncharacteristically fatigued. Honestly, her behavior was the most unnerving of all.

"Alice, please just stop trying," I said softly after a few minutes. "You're clearly getting nowhere. For all we know, you're having so much trouble seeing Edward because one of the wolves is following him. He's due to be here any minute. We'll just have to go into this one blind."

"I can't do that, Bella," Alice half-growled, half-grumbled. "Yes, Edward is due here any minute, and we still have no idea why. That is not okay."

Just then, an idea came to mind. A part of me felt awful for thinking so deceptively. After all, this was Edward, not Victoria, but my gut was telling me to be prepared, so I had to follow through. "Alice, can I borrow your cellphone?" That got everyone's attention.

"What do you need it for, Bella?" She asked me even as she darted across the room to retrieve her phone. Even as she handed it to me, she questioned me. "What are you thinking?"

"Don't ask, Alice," I responded quickly, tucking the phone into my jacket pocket. "Don't try to see it, either. I don't want Edward to know what I'm doing, and I haven't practiced with my shield enough to block all of you from him consistently and reliably. You just need to trust me, okay?"

"Bella," Jasper started to argue, but I held up a silencing hand.

"Please, Jasper," I pleaded. "Don't fight me on this. I know what I'm doing. Trust me."

"It's not a matter of trust, Bella," Jasper began again. "Of course I trust you, but Edward…"

"Is here," Alice murmured and the whole room fell silent. "He's a mile off. He'll be within earshot in a second." I jumped to my feet and ran over to Jasper, kissing his cheek and giving his cool hand a light squeeze.

"Trust me," I whispered once more. Less than thirty seconds later, there was a tentative knock on the door. Low warning growls filled the room, but Carlisle gave everyone a staying glance and went to open the door.

"Edward, it's good to see you again," Carlisle said conventionally as he let Edward in. "It's been a while. Esme and I were starting to worry." A small part of my mind noted the fact that Carlisle only said 'Esme and I', but such little details were lost on me when Edward came into full view.

"Hello everyone," He said to the room, though his bright gold eyes looked only at me. "Hello, Bella," he said gently. For a moment, I stared speechlessly back at him. He looked just as I remembered him. Barely a hair out of place. Somehow, that observation caused me pain. The nearly healed hole in my chest tingled and throbbed. Was I really so inconsequential to him that he could appear so entirely unaffected?

"Hello, Edward," I murmured despondently, suddenly not so confident in myself. How was I going to do this? For some reason, Edward smiled faintly.

"Bella, are you unintentionally shielding everyone, or should I be worried?" He said casually. I blinked, and for a moment my mind went completely blank.

"You knew?" Jasper suddenly growled, jumping to his feet while his dark gold eyes went completely black with cold fury. "You knew she could project it?"

"I've known for quite some time, Jasper," Edward said flatly. "That's exactly why I'm here. I know Bella is a Saturno, and I know I need to explain why I left her so suddenly, despite that knowledge. If it's all the same to you though, I think Bella deserves to hear the truth first? Bella," he said, his eyes still on me, "I know how you must be feeling right now, but please come walk with me for a minute? I know I hurt you, but please trust me enough to let me explain?" Jasper growled lowly and took a step toward Edward, but I ran three steps forward to put myself between the two vampires.

"Don't, Jasper!" I choked out, my throat inconveniently tight with emotion. "Please, just let me speak to him!" I placed a staying hand on Jasper's chest and he gradually relaxed under my touch. He looked down at me and, for a moment, I was lost in his passion-filed gaze… and then it was gone. Jasper seemed to shut down right before my eyes. His expression went blank and he stepped back from my hand, detaching himself both physically and emotionally. It would have been less painful if he'd punched me in the stomach. I drew a shaky breath and fought back the tears in my eyes that threatened to brim over, and I turned to face Edward.

"Okay," I whispered, taking a tentative step toward him. "Let's go… Let's talk, I mean." Edward held out his hand for me to take, but I shook my head once, refusing the offer. Instead, I took a few more steps past him and led the way back outside. Edward followed me silently, and no one tried to stop us. For a minute or so, we walked in silence and I used the time to clear my head as much as possible. The chilly February weather helped, though I had to watch out for ice. I casually tucked both of my hands in my pockets as we walked, and my right hand brushed against Alice's cellphone.

"Are you looking for a specific place, Bella?" Edward softly inquired after another minute or so. "I just wanted to speak to you out of earshot of the others. There's no need to tire yourself with a long hike, unless that's just your preference."

"No, here is fine," I said, trying to sound calm and collected even though I knew Edward could hear my heart pounding. He didn't mention it, so I assumed he was writing it all off as understandable apprehension, luckily for me. Trying to keep my movement minimal, I blindly felt the keypad on Alice's phone with my thumb. When I found what I hoped was the send button, I held it down for a couple seconds and prayed that the last number Alice called wasn't the landline of a house in Alaska.


	15. Never Let Me Go

♂︎(Jasper's POV)

As soon as Carlisle closed the door behind Bella and Edward, Alice closed her eyes, focusing entirely on seeing what Bella was up to. Apparently, she got her answer quickly, because she turned to glare at me only a few seconds later.

"What was that about?" She demanded in a half-growl. I was taken aback.

"If you're referring to my near-attack on Edward, Alice, you should know Emmett was about to do the same. I could feel it. Even Irina was resisting the urge to take him down."

"Yes, and so was I," Alice grumbled, rolling her eyes. "I'm talking about what you did to Bella, not Edward." That one caught me off guard. It was at that moment, a minute too late, that I realized what she was talking about.

"Dammit," I growled, mentally kicking myself. "I wasn't even focusing on Bella's emotions, Alice, I swear it. I felt the tension in the room getting to me, so when Bella jumped between me and Edward, I shut down completely. I wasn't even thinking of how Bella might react to that. I'm only just realizing I did feel it. I just wasn't paying attention." At that point, I started calling myself ten kinds of idiot. Most of it I kept to myself, but some of my self-insults were spoken aloud.

"Easy, Jazz," Alice sighed after a moment, all anger gone from within her. "What you did is understandable when you put it that way. I'm sure Bella will forgive you." I shook my head in utter disbelief of my own behavior.

"It wasn't just what happened in this room though, was it?" I asked rhetorically. "I took off as soon as I found out Edward was coming, planning to hunt him down at the worst possible time, without even thinking of how Bella would take it. More than anything, she needed my comfort and support this last week, and I chose this week to completely lose it. Here the person who hurt her so much has returned, and I just poured salt in the wound by hurting her myself… I have to go after them," I quickly decided, starting to step around Alice. "I have to apologize to Bella. I need to be there with her." I was almost to the door when Alice leapt in front of me.

"No, Jazz," she said warningly, sinking into a defensive stance. She was ready to fight me if necessary . That fact alone made me stop dead in my tracks.

"Alice, what did you see?" Carlisle asked, always the voice of reason in this family. Alice looked at him as though she was about to answer, but then she gasped and held up a silencing finger to the room.

"Rosalie, answer your phone," Alice ordered, pinning Rose with a don't-even-think-about-saying-no stare. "Now. Open it, but no one say a word." Rosalie blinked once, taken aback, but she reached for her cellphone without argument. The phone vibrated in her hand once and her dark eyes widened in surprise. She quickly pressed the 'ok' button and Bella's voice filled the room, though the sound was a little muffled.

"So… You know I'm a Saturno? How long have you known, Edward? And why didn't you tell anyone? Why didn't you tell me?"

"I was expecting you to start with a different question," Edward's voice responded, "but I'm glad you started with this. I know this probably won't make sense to you, Bella, but just let me explain myself before you say anything more, okay?"

"I understand a lot more than you might think, Edward," Bella replied. "And no, I'm not going to promise you anything. Never again, but please go on and answer me." My still heart promptly swelled with pride. Bella was standing up to Edward.

"Of course." Edward's voice sounded contrite, but there was no telling if the emotion was genuine. None of us could see his face, and he was out of range of my gift. "I, like everyone else, regarded your immunity to my gift as random and inconsequential for a time. That assumption began to change that night I found you in Port Angeles." There was a barely audible, sharp intake of breath and an odd rustling noise. Alice caught my eye and touched her pocket, silently explaining the noise.

"That long ago?" Bella gasped.

"I'm afraid so," Edward half-laughed. He really had some nerve. It was an intense struggle to not growl in outrage and give Bella away. "When I finally saw you in the minds of those men, it took an unusual amount of effort for me to stay attuned to them. At first, I thought my focus was just hampered by my overwhelming concern for your safety. The more I thought about it, though… I realized you were inadvertently projecting your gift, even then. You were by no means deliberately shielding your attackers, but you were reacting defensively all the same. Your shield must have been shooting in and out haphazardly, projecting out around those men and then retracting, allowing me to hear them."

"Okay…" Bella began slowly. "I guess that makes sense, but that was only one gift: My shield."

"I didn't become aware of your second gift until that night we met James," Edward quickly explained. "When James and I nearly came to blows right there in that field, I realized my gift was sharper than usual. That realization coupled with the thoughts I picked up from James…"

"What thoughts?" Bella was quick to pounce on that slip. My girl.

"Bella, though James was a tracker, tracking gifts have many subtle variations. James' gift was somewhat like Eleazar's. He tracked his prey by picking up on their gifts. Though your shield prevented him from getting a clear reading on you, he could tell that you were not only gifted, but dually so." There was a long pause before Bella spoke. When she did, her voice shook slightly with some emotion.

"That night, you told me James chose to hunt me for the challenge of it," she began. "You said he saw it as his 'most exciting game ever'?" I could almost see Edward nodding his head slowly.

"Yes," he confessed. "James knew then that you were a Saturno, just as I did. The fact that you had so many vampires protecting you added to the challenge, but what he was most interested in was the challenge of killing a Saturno. You see, Bella, it may be that all the humans James ever killed had some dormant gift within them. That, more than the scent of their blood, is what drew him in. That's the real reason he tried to kill Alice, all those years ago. It could be argued that he was, quite literally, hardwired to kill off humans that could potentially become gifted vampires. Even Victoria was unaware of it, but it was his nature."

"And a Saturno is the most gifted kind of vampire," Bella said.

"To him, you were the holy grail among all his past prey," Edward said. "That was when I realized we could never change you."

"What?!" Bella spluttered, clearly shocked by his distorted reasoning. "That's why you refused to change me?! Not because you were trying to spare my soul, but because you knew what I would become?!"

"Bella, please calm down," Edward argued. "You're missing the whole point."

"What exactly am I missing Edward?" Bella growled. A real growl that probably threw Edward through a loop. I fleetingly wished I could see the dumbstruck look on his face. "You told me you loved me and that you wanted me forever," Bella raged on, "but you just changed your mind when you realized how powerful I could be?! You know, your ego is absurdly inflated, even for a vampire!" That was very nearly our undoing. Emmett clamped his hand over his mouth just in time to muffle the snicker that escaped him. Kate even threw a mock punch in the air, silently cheering Bella on.

"Bella, it has nothing to do with ego at all!" Edward protested, recollecting himself. "You're reading into this all wrong. I did love you, and I still do! I'll always love you, but I know the danger that changing you will pose to you and everyone else!" There was a ringing silence on both ends of the line then. That Edward would dare use that word…

"Bella, what James did was just the tip of the iceberg," Edward continued softly enough that we could hear the crunching sound of his footsteps as he moved closer to Bella. I pictured him reaching out to touch Bella, and it was all I could do to not growl in fury. "Even in human form, you're in more danger than I think you realize."

"No," Bella argued feebly. "Jasper and Eleazar told me… I know some others might want to change me for themselves."

"And when you stubbornly refuse to betray your friends and family, they'll kill you before they let someone else have you," Edward interrupted. "And that's only while you remain in human form. Despite what you may think, Bella, the danger will only increase if you're changed. Other vampires will feel threatened by you, even if it's irrationally so. Whole covens will unite to take you down, simply because your existence will lower their own status. Most vampires live in false comfort. They don't believe their power to be rivaled by anything. True werewolves are all but extinct. Powerful shape-shifters like the ones in La Push⏤they tend to keep to themselves, living under the radar. Threats to vampires are virtually non-existent. The Volturi only hold so much influence because of their large numbers and powerful gifts… Bella, your change would completely overturn the balance of power in our world. Consider that."

"So…" Bella began, and I could hear in her voice that some of her earlier resolve was fading. "What exactly was your plan?" She asked. "I mean… What was the point of leaving me? Why not just tell me all this from the beginning?"

"I knew my family would disagree with my reasoning," Edward answered simply. Damn right. "Bella, I always planned to come back for you. My family just beat me to it." What the…?

"I… I don't understand…" Bella's muffled voice was barely audible through the phone. More crunching and rustling. Edward was moving even closer to Bella. The mutual tension in the room spiked, and it was all I could do not to succumb to it.

"I needed everyone else to forget about you," Edward continued. "That was the only way to make you safe. I tried to wait… When I last checked in on the others, I saw in Alice's mind that she wasn't trying to see you as often. It was such a relief. My family was beginning to move on, so I was almost free to return. My plan was always to come get you, to take you away from here, to a place where no one knows who you are… Who we are. Bella, don't you see? I did it for us. I did it because I love you. I was going to come back. I'll always come back for you."

This was the end. That did it. Bella was going to take him back. She was going to run away with him, and I was never going to see her again. It was over. My still heart broke as I started to accept the inevitable, but then…

"What if I don't want you to?" Bella's response was so soft, I wasn't entirely sure I'd heard it. I looked at the others for clarification, and they all nodded in unison, in encouragement.

"What do you mean, Bella?" Edward asked, obviously not expecting that response. Come on, Bella…

"I don't… want you to." Bella's words were music to my ears, sung by a chorus of angels. All around me, the feelings of the others echoed my own to an extent: Relief, gratitude, pride, love, amazement, wonder, shock, joy, approval, respect… The list went on and on. "I don't want you, Edward." I wanted to jump up and cheer when Bella fed Edward back his own line. "I'll always love you too, but it's just not the same anymore. You're controlling, and belittling, and assuming… I can't be the stupid lamb to your masochistic lion anymore. It was killing me. Yes, becoming a vampire may pose a lot of danger, but it's my life. It's my choice… and a confined, mortal life with you… That's the last choice I would ever willingly make." I was flying. My feet were still on the ground, but gravity could no longer hold me down.

"You would rather be with Jasper?" Edward's demanded coldly. "Is that it? He nearly killed you, Bella. He was going to drain you like you were nothing."

"Stop," Bella protested. "Don't you say that."

"He wanted me to kill you after we first met. He would have done it himself."

"That doesn't matter," Bella argued. "Things are so much better with Jasper already. I was always comparing myself to you. I always felt like I could never measure up. Jasper doesn't make me feel that way."

"Well, obviously," Edward said scathingly. "It's his gift, Bella. Unlike my gift, his still works on you. He's manipulating you."

"He would never do that!" Bella screamed in protest.

"He did that to everyone he met for over a century!"

"Not to me," Bella growled back. "Never to me!"

"Bella, why are you being so difficult?" Edward demanded. "You wanted this. You said you wanted to be with me, that you loved me."

"Yes, I did!" Bella shouted. "I was ready to give you everything, but you wanted to pick and choose! You only wanted what I was offering you if it was on your terms, not mine! I take it all back, Edward! You have nothing I want now!" Bella's shouts abruptly ceased and there was a sharp intake of breath.

"Well, I still want you," Edward said, and his voice sounded even closer to the phone than before. "I'll take you away from here. I'll take you away from all this mess and you'll start to see reason again. You'll change your mind again, and we'll be together like we always planned. You'll see, Bella."

"No, Edward," Bella's voice was strangely tight, almost pained.

"You'll grow to love me again, just like you did before, and we'll build a better life together."

"Edward, you're hurting me. Let go." Within the same millisecond that those words were uttered, we were all running. We were running at full speed. Edward would hear us coming, but that didn't matter. He was hurting Bella, and we had to stop him. No matter what else happened, we couldn't let him take Bella. She'd made her choice, and we'd all made ours. An eternity without Edward we could all endure, but we couldn't lose Bella.


	16. Leave One to Love One

♀︎(Bella's POV)

Edward dropped my hand immediately, but I was sure help was coming anyway, and I knew I would need it.

"I'm sorry, Bella," Edward said quickly. "I didn't mean to hurt you. Forgive me. I wasn't thinking and I forgot to moderate my strength for a moment… Bella, please, you must come with me. I know what I'm talking about. I may have handled this the wrong way, but it was all in your best interest."

"No!" I growled. Typical Edward, he still wasn't listening to me. "You don't know what's best for me! You only know what you want for me! It's not the same, Edward!"

"Bella," Edward began, but he hesitated. His hands clenched into fists at his sides and he looked down for a moment. For that one moment, I considered trying to run even though I knew I wouldn't get far, and then it was too late. "I'm sorry, Bella," Edward continued, "but you've left me no choice." Edward looked up at me and his eyes were smoldering pools of molten gold. Breath left my body and my legs turned to jelly. He was dazzling me. No, no, no…

"No…" I gasped. "Edward, stop…" I muttered breathlessly, trying to focus my thoughts. After a moment, I was able to force my eyes shut, but I still felt Edward moving closer. I felt his cool, sweet breath against my face and my thoughts became jumbled. How long had we walked? How far were we from the house? Where was Jasper? Jasper…

"Bella, I can hear the others coming," Edward murmured gently. "We have to go. I promise everything will be alright. You just have to trust me. I'll take care of you, love. Forever." Then his marble lips were on mine. That did it. Something changed in me. My thoughts were suddenly crystal clear again, and I felt a strange electricity coursing through my body. It was nothing like the electricity I used to feel when Edward kissed me. This was a completely different kind of rush. It was violent and intense, radiating from my very core and energizing me. Every nerve in my body was a live wire and I was ready to fight.

"NO!" I growled forcefully and my hand snapped toward his face like a whip. He was faster, and he grabbed my wrist before I could make contact. I loosed another true growl. "Get away from me, Edward!" I commanded. "Now!"

"Bella, what's gotten into you?" Edward asked incredulously. Was he honestly so surprised?

"You dazzled me! You kissed me, you…! You…!" Even in my outrage I hesitated to use the word, but for once it was fitting. "You monster!" Edward flinched. He actually flinched, and he released me. For a fleeting moment, I almost felt guilty. Almost.

"I'll agree with that assessment," Jasper growled dangerously. He emerged from the trees behind Edward and stalked forward slowly. Emmett was one step behind him, followed by all the others. Carlisle and Esme brought up the rear. The pain evident on their faces promptly smothered the raging fire in me. Seeing us fight would kill them.

"Stop," I said in a clear, decisive voice. Once again, I stepped in between Edward and Jasper, this time with an entirely different purpose. "Jasper, focus," I urged him, looking him right in the eye. "I know everyone is angry now, but focus on Carlisle and Esme. What are they feeling now?" Jasper blinked. After a moment, he relaxed his fighting stance. "Exactly," I said. "This isn't just about us. We can't hurt each other, not like this…" I had to stop and take a steadying breath… okay, two… and then I turned to face Edward.

"You don't need to read our minds to know you aren't welcome here, Edward," I said evenly. "You said what you needed to say, and so did I. We're done here."

"Bella," Edward started to argue, but the deafening growls that erupted all around us made him rethink that choice. He flinched again, and my resolve weakened marginally. I took a step toward him and I started to reach for him. My hand almost reached his face, but I thought better of that and let it settle on his shoulder. After that, I chose my words carefully. "I'm sorry it came to this," I said slowly. "I'm sorry we have to part in anger, but please… don't make this come to a fight. Just go, Edward. Go away and leave me alone. Leave us alone, and don't come back for me. I don't want you to." Edward said nothing, but he started to reach for my hand on his shoulder, so I quickly withdrew my hand.

"If you try to touch her one more time, I swear…" Jasper hissed venomously. For the moment, I ignored him. I maintained eye contact with Edward, no longer worried about him dazzling me.

"Go," I whispered once more. Edward stared back at me for one more long moment, and then he fled. He turned on his heel and darted away too quickly for even my somewhat improved eyes to follow. It was just a blur of movement and a gust of wind. He was gone… again.

I don't know how long I stood there, staring after him. It could've been seconds or it could've been hours. Eventually, Jasper came up behind me and tentatively touched my shoulder. I turned on the spot and threw myself into his stone arms. I was shaking from head to toe, though I had no idea why.

"Are you okay, Bella?" Jasper asked me. I nodded.

"Yes," I whispered. "He didn't really hurt me. He just squeezed too tight for a minute. Now that I'm healing so quickly, there probably won't even be a bruise."

"That still doesn't excuse it," Kate seethed. "He's lucky I didn't shock his arm right off."

"I don't know what he was thinking, but I have to say I'm grateful it didn't come to that, Kate," Carlisle sighed. "Thank you for intervening, Bella. I'm so sorry for what Edward did to you, to everyone… but I can't stop thinking of him as my son."

"I understand, Carlisle," I said softly. "Really, I do. It's okay."

"That really was some trick you pulled, Bella," Tanya interrupted, surprising me. "You even shielded all of us when we were all in the room together… Not bad."

"Um… Thanks," I said, not entirely sure if she was complimenting me or not. "I wasn't really trying to project my shield. It just happened when Edward walked in."

"Your powers are obviously growing, Bella," Eleazar chimed in. "Yes, your control may need more work, but you should be proud of your talents. They're truly impressive." That was definitely a compliment.

"Thank you," I still replied awkwardly. I was gradually adjusting to the whole Saturno thing, but that really wasn't what I wanted to discuss at that moment. More than anything, I wanted a chance to speak to Jasper without an audience. I needed to be alone with him, a fact that was not lost on Jasper. He clearly sensed it.

"Let's just get you back to the house now," he said, lifting me into his arms in one smooth motion. "I think we'll all feel a little more at ease once you're safe at home again."

"Yes," Esme quickly agreed, her relief evident. "Please, let's go back." Everyone else murmured their agreement.

The run back was a little too fast. I was happy to stay cradled safely in Jasper's arms, but I was back on my own feet all too soon… and the audience was still there. Ten pairs of eternal eyes were riveted on me as if I was about to perform some fantastic magic trick, but all I wanted was to be alone with Jasper. Again, Jasper felt my anxiety.

"Bella and I will be okay here," he said to all the others. "Why don't the rest of you go search the woods to make sure Edward left, and maybe you all can take a little time to hunt?" The surrounding vampires clearly got the message. They all turned and filtered back out of the house. Esme was the last to leave, pausing only long enough to give me a quick hug, and then she was gone too. Even with everyone out of the house, I still felt a little too exposed in the massive living room.

"Your room?" I asked Jasper.

"Of course," he said. He correctly guessed that I wanted to walk. He just took my hand and walked along beside me. I knew what I wanted to say, but I was still trying to figure out how to say it. Jasper was patient with me, not pushing me before I was ready. As I expected, I felt markedly more comfortable when we reached his room.

Though I'd already slept in the room, once, I took a minute to really appreciate it: The cream-colored carpet looked plush and pristine. The walls were a silvery gray, like a cloudy sky at twilight. One wall was completely covered with books, all arranged neatly across smooth pine shelves, and the large bed at the center of the room was covered by a pale yellow comforter and cream-colored pillows that matched the carpet. The bed somewhat resembled a massive, fluffy slice of lemon meringue pie. I smiled at the thought.

"Something funny?" Jasper prodded. "That was quite a mood shift." I couldn't help but laugh a little.

"No, I just love this room," I said, turning to face him. "I love the colors⏤gray, yellow, white⏤It's soothing. It suits you, really." That made Jasper smile too.

"Bella," Jasper began after another moment of silence. "I'm sorry if I hurt you, right before you and Edward left. I was overwhelmed by my own emotions and all the emotions around me, and I shut down. I was just terrified of losing you. I'm not saying I doubted you, but I was still worried… To put it simply, Bella, I was an idiot. To put it simply… I love you, and I lost my mind for a minute. I'm sorry."

"Jasper, please don't," I said. "I understand. Really, I do. I'm not upset with you at all. Surely you can feel that. I was just… I mean… You aren't upset with me, are you?" Jasper blinked, clearly not expecting that question.

"Upset with you?" He asked incredulously.

"Edward kissed me, and… I just thought you'd be angry." Jasper, to my immense surprise, laughed outright.

"Yes, Bella," he laughed, "He kissed you, and I was close enough to feel your reaction when he did that. You were furious and you tried to slap him. Personally, I was ready to take his arm off for doing that, but… I can understand why you stepped in too. In fact, I'm glad you did. I really couldn't care less about Edward at this point, but you were right to remind me of Carlisle and Esme. Seeing all of us fight would have crushed them. Everything you did tonight was right, Bella. The cellphone trick, the way you shielded us, stopping the fight, telling Edward to leave… You maintained your composure, even when I failed to do the same. You were brilliant. Of course I'm not upset with you." With that huge weight off my chest, I had to laugh a little too.

"I'm just glad it all worked out so well," I admitted, pulling Alice's cellphone out of my pocket. "I didn't know if it was going to work. I just pressed a button and got lucky for a change. Whose phone did I call?"

"Rosalie's," Jasper answered. "Alice saw the call coming, of course. Otherwise, the ringing might have given you away."

"That's what I was worried about too," I laughed, almost dizzy with relief. "But you came. It worked, and you came for me..." Jasper stepped closer to me and pulled me into his arms.

"I told you I'll always come for you," he whispered tenderly… and then he growled. "Of course, that's what he just told you..." He grumbled in disgust. "Let me rephrase: As long as you want me here beside you, nothing will keep me away. As long as you're mine, I'll follow you anywhere and do anything for you. I love you, Bella."

In that moment, nothing else in the world existed. There was just me and Jasper in that room. Any thoughts of Edward flew out of my mind like feathers in the wind. An entirely new kind of fire ignited inside me, and nothing could put it out. In that moment, I was finally able to speak those long overdue words. "I love you, Jasper. I love you, and If I may borrow your words, I'll follow you anywhere and do anything for you too, as long as you're mine… As long as you want me."

After a short beat of silence, Jasper pulled me even closer and kissed me fiercely. My hands tangled in his hair as I kissed him back with the same ferocity. We only stopped when I needed to breathe.

"Forever, Bella," Jasper breathed in my ear while I gasped for breath. "I want you forever." Something about the way he said that made my knees buckle. He pulled me back up and I instinctively latched onto him, wrapping my arms around his neck and my legs around his waist, and something about the new position made the fire in me intensify.

"God, Bella!" Jasper gasped, feeling the distinct change. His marble lips claimed mine in another fiery kiss while he guided me backward to sit on his bed.

"Bella," he gasped again, pulling away for a moment.

"Oh, please don't give me the 'I might hurt you' lecture," I groaned impatiently, throwing my arms back around his neck and kissing him again. His eyes were dark, but I knew he wouldn't hurt me.

"No, it's not that," Jasper breathed, detaching himself from me one more time. " I'm not a virgin like Edward, Bella. I know what to expect, so I'll probably be okay, but… Are you sure this is what you want, Bella? I just don't want you doing something you're going to regret."

"I'll never regret you," I panted in reply. "I'll never regret anything to do with you. I've never been more sure of anything. I want you forever, Jasper, and I want you right now." That started another round of passionate kissing. By the end of it, I was laying on my back on the plush comforter, and Jasper was holding himself up over me. To my intense frustration, he chose that moment to pull back again.

"Patience, Bella," Jasper said with a soft smile. "I just don't want to rush through this. Not only is it more dangerous if we go too fast, but it's your first time. It needs to be done right."

"Jasper, please," I started to argue, but Jasper hit me with an abrupt tidal wave of love, lust, and desire that made my head spin.

"And that's only part of what you're making me feel right now, Bella," Jasper purred seductively, his silken voice only serving to make my heart pound even faster. "Humor me, sweetheart." I swallowed hard and nodded once, trying to regain some control over myself. Jasper wasn't helping. His cool, deft hands pulled off my shoes and socks in what looked and felt like one fluid motion.

"Breathe, Bella," he urged, sending a quick wave of calm my way. I hadn't realized I'd stopped breathing. I was able to draw a few deep breaths while Jasper removed his shoes and socks too. "Bella," he spoke again, "before we go any further, there's something you need to see. Now that your vision has sharpened a little, you'll be able to see all of my scars. There are hundreds of them, Bella. It's not a pretty sight, so if it makes you uncomfortable…"

"Don't even say that," I managed a growl, despite my breathlessness. I sat up and came to kneel on the bed in front of him. Jasper stared back at me for a moment, unsure of my intent, so I reached up and touched the scars on is forehead to make my intent a little clearer. "You're right, Jasper," I said. "Your scars aren't pretty. They're beautiful. They're marks of all you've been through, of how incredibly strong and brave you are." With that, I let my hand slowly descend to the collar of his shirt. My other hand rose to the same spot, and I started working on the buttons. I pulled each one loose until Jasper's crisp blue shirt hung open, revealing the scarred planes of his muscular chest and stomach. My eyes welled up with tears at the sight, but I found myself smiling too.

"Beautiful," I repeated, meeting Jaspers wonder-filled eyes. I let my fingers trail down the exposed front of his body, feeling each scar on his cool, marble skin, all the while marveling at the exquisite creature before me. I was shocked when Jasper shuddered slightly at my touch. He regained his composure quickly.

Jasper ripped his shirt off completely and pulled me into a slightly-too-long kiss. I almost fainted by the time I remembered to breathe. Making matters even worse, Jasper's hands came up to unbutton my own shirt, and I began panting erratically. I blushed at my own behavior, making Jasper hesitate in his actions, but I grabbed his hands and held them in place for a moment, letting him know it was okay. He moved at an excruciatingly slow pace and I was soon growling in frustration.

"You know, even your average human would be done with those damn buttons by now," I growled. Jasper's dark eyes flashed at the challenge in my tone and my heart skipped a beat. In less than a second, Jasper ripped my shirt off in one clean sweep, making my heart pound like a war drum in my chest. It was then that I remembered my own new scars, and for a moment my self-consciousness distracted me.

"Bella, do I really need to remind you of what you said to me only moments ago," Jasper murmured tenderly, easing me backward until I was laying on my back again. He didn't bother repeating my words. Instead, he leaned in to lightly kiss the scar on my neck. From there, he moved down to press his cool lips to the scar on my shoulder. He continued his descent, placing feather-light kisses on the scar just above my right breast, followed by the one on my hip, and finally he placed a firmer kisses on the layered scars on my wrist. My heart surely sounded like a very loud humming bird to his ears by the time he finished, beating out of control. The course of his kisses had brought him dangerously close to…

"Jasper!" I gasped when his hand dipped just barely under the top edge of my low-rise jeans. He took that as encouragement and unbuttoned my jeans. Hooking his fingers through my belt loops, he dragged my pants down slowly, his appreciative eyes making me blush furiously as more and more of my pale flesh was exposed. Soon, my jeans joined my shredded shirt on the floor. Almost completely naked in front of Jasper, my self-consciousness flared again. This time, Jasper used his gift to ease it. He hit me with another tidal wave of love, lust, and desire, and I found myself writhing on the bed in anticipation. Jasper growled lowly as he drank in the sight of me and the sound almost pushed me over the edge.

"That close already, are you?" Jasper purred seductively, moving up level with me again and running his cool fingers teasingly up my arm. "Bella, we've only just begun. Are you sure you're ready for this? In a few more minutes, we'll be past the point of no return..." I could tell from the tone of his voice that he knew I wasn't about to back out. He just wanted me to say it again. He was playing with me. I growled in reply.

"Jasper, I think you're a little overdressed for this," I teased right back. Jasper's eyes were swirling pools of molten onyx as he stared at me, holding my gaze as he stood up beside the bed. My heart hammered as he unbuttoned his own jeans and slid them off, and I gasped when I saw his large, hardened length barely concealed within his gray boxers. I had nothing to compare it to, but I briefly wondered if all male vampires were well hung… Jasper sure was.

Surprising even myself, I crawled over to him and slowly pulled off his boxers myself, letting them fall to his ankles so he could kick them off. When his erect length sprang free, I tentatively reached out to stroke it lightly with my hand, letting my curiosity overpower my nerves. Jasper let loose a sound that was part-growl, part-groan. I gripped him a little harder and the sound became more pronounced. I stood up and kissed him, all the while moving my hand up and down along his shaft, and another wave of lust smashed into me, seemingly uncontrolled by Jasper. It wasn't deliberate. I was distracting him too much for him to focus on not projecting. My confidence got a much needed boost from that thought.

"Bella," Jasper groaned when I boldly reached one hand around to explore his backside. I started dragging my fingernails lightly down his scarred back until I dipped low enough to provoke another growl from him. In a sudden movement too quick for me to follow, he reached behind me and unhooked my bra. Even as it fell away, he stripped off my cotton boyshorts too, leaving me completely naked before him.

"God, Bella, you're beautiful," He breathed, and he kissed me fiercely, exploring my mouth thoroughly with his tongue. Soon, I grew impatient with the lip-to-lip kissing and I tilted my head down so I could kiss one of the scars on his neck, just as he had kissed mine. Jasper growled again and he threw me roughly back on the be. Despite my recent experiences, the rough play was quite a turn-on.

Jasper pounced on me and grabbed both my wrists in one of his hands, pinning them above my head. "Keep them up," He ordered in that same seductive, commanding voice that almost made me come out of my skin. I nodded feebly and he released my hands. I kept them above my head, but the willpower needed to do so flew almost completely out the window when Jasper's hands found my breasts, his grip firm without causing pain. I gasped and my arms shook as I fought to keep them up. All was lost when Jasper replaced one of his hands with his mouth.

"What did I tell you, Bella?" Jasper growled, pulling away abruptly when my hands gripped his honey-colored hair. I growled in exasperation and Jasper smiled wickedly at me. "Remember who you're dealing with, Bella," he purred. "I dealt with newborn vampires for a century. Temper tantrums will get you nowhere with me."

"Remember who you're dealing with, Jasper," I countered. "Unlike your newborns, I'm not afraid of you." Jasper's black eyes flashed dangerously and I knew I was going to pay for that one. Jasper growled and grabbed my wrists again. This time, he didn't release them. He grabbed his jeans off the floor and used them to tie my hands to the headboard.

"Now behave, or you'll be stuck there all night," he threatened and I shuddered involuntarily.

"Still not afraid of you," I panted defiantly. Jasper smiled and leaned in closer.

"That's my girl," He purred in approval. My stomach flipped and my hips jerked upward of their own accord.

"Soon," Jasper laughed huskily. "Almost there…" With that, his mouth closed around the hardened peak of my breast again, his cold tongue laving and teasing first one, and then the other. I was writhing beneath him all the while, gasping and moaning in pleasure. Jasper moved lower then, placing open-mouthed kisses all across my flat stomach and down to my hips. He paused for a moment, waiting until I was positively shaking with anticipation, and then he dipped even lower.

"Jasper! Oh, my…! Jasper!" I gasped incoherently, my first orgasm tearing through my body the moment his tongue grazed my clit. He continued licking and kissing with firm pressure, keeping a steady pace until my second orgasm hit. My entrance was drenched by the time he slid one finger slowly inside me. I gasped and my hips bucked at the sensation. Jasper pumped his finger in and out a few times, almost sending me over the edge a third time before stopping and removing his finger… only to put it in his mouth, licking it clean of my juices. He groaned and my eyes rolled into the back of my head for a moment.

"Better than any blood I've ever tasted, Bella," he purred as he crawled up level with me again. He kissed me briefly, and then he pulled back, looking up at my arms still positioned above my head. He quickly untied me and tossed his jeans back to the floor. My arms immediately locked around his neck and pulled him closer so I could kiss him again. I explored his mouth with my tongue, carefully moving around his teeth and taking in his ridiculously sweet taste. When we broke apart, we were both gasping for breath and I was hyperaware of Jasper's hardness against my thigh.

"It's going to hurt at first," he whispered lovingly. "I'm sorry, but it's unavoidable. I can ease some of the pain with my gift. I can help you relax through it. I can even fully sedate you if you want, but some pain is inevitable."

"It's okay, Jasper," I said. "I know it'll hurt, but it's just this once. Don't put me out completely. I don't want to miss a moment of this, even if it is painful."

"I'll go slowly at first," he breathed as he positioned himself at my entrance. "Just breathe, sweetheart. Breathe, Bella." I took a couple slow, steady breaths and I nodded, encouraging him to go on. He pushed into me slowly. At first it was just mildly uncomfortable, but then he reached the barrier within and I braced for the real pain. "I love you, Bella," he breathed, and in one more swift thrust he sheathed himself in me completely. I gasped at the sharpness of the pain and a few tears spilled from my eyes. Jasper kissed each tear away, sending waves of calm and ease into me and remaining statue-still while I adjusted to him. The coldness of his body helped ease the pain too. The combination of the cool temperature and his soothing gift got me through it, and I was ready to continue a few minutes later.

"Okay," I whispered. With my permission, Jasper pulled back slowly and thrust forward again. It still hurt, but the pain was getting better, so I didn't stop him. He kept a slow, steady rhythm until the pain faded almost entirely and pleasure was paramount instead. Soon, my hips were turning up to meet his thrusts.

"Faster," I encouraged. "Harder. Don't be afraid of hurting me, Jasper. I trust you. I love you, Jasper." Jasper seemed all too happy to oblige. His pace picked up, as did the strength of his thrusts, and soon I felt another orgasm approaching.

"J-Jasper," I gasped. "I'm gonna… I'm close… Are you?"

"Right with you, Bella," Jasper breathed, and he reached one hand between us. He pinched my clit lightly and I tumbled over the edge. My walls clenched tightly around him and I screamed out his name. After a couple more short, fast thrusts, he shouted my name and tumbled into oblivion with me. Gasping for breath, he rolled off me so as not to crush me, and I rolled over to lay my head on his scarred marble chest.

"Bella," he gasped as his stone arms encircled me. "I know it's poor form to talk about others in bed, but that was… Bella, it never felt like that with Alice… That was…" Jasper's utter incoherence was flattering in and of itself.

"It was incredible," I finished for him.

"Better than that," he said, "but we'll go with that for now, until I can think straight again. Bella, you do realize this kind of thing isn't supposed to happen to vampires? You really like breaking all the rules, don't you?"

"Well, most of the time I don't even know what rules I'm allegedly breaking," I laughed. "Except the rule about humans not loving vampires," I amended. "I know I'm breaking that rule, but I really don't care."

"Nor do I," Jasper chuckled softly, his body shaking beneath me. "I love you, Bella Swan," he said.

"I love you Jasper … um… Whitlock, Hale, or Cullen?" I laughed, unsure of which name to use. Personally, I was kind of partial to Whitlock, but…

"You pick," Jasper chuckled.

"I love you, Jasper Whitlock."

"I was hoping you'd choose that one," Jasper murmured, but I was already starting to fall asleep. Jasper sent more calming waves my way, speeding up the process, and I fell asleep in the arms of my true mate, my true love, my reason for living… Forever.


	17. The Bat and the Basilisk

♀︎(Bella's POV)

"I heard Edward was going to come back, but he refused to come near her again."

"No, no, no. He found out that Bella was sneaking around with Jasper. He told Alice about it too, but she doesn't look too upset about it."

"I told you it was weird for them to date each other. This was bound to happen."

"Hey, does anyone know if they've all been together? You know, like all at once?"

"Ew! That's disgusting!"

"We all knew the Cullens were freaks."

"We knew Bella was too. I guess they all do deserve each other, in a sick way"

"Bella sure seems happier since they all got back. I bet Edward never mattered much to her at all. All of them are interchangeable, apparently…"

A low growl rumbled in Alice's throat and I dragged her out of the cafeteria, away from all the stares. I sighed heavily. "They sure forgot my zombie state quickly enough. Aren't you used to rumors like that?"

"Yes, Bella," Alice grumbled. "We're used to it after a hundred years or so of moving from one gossipy town to another, but this is too much for you to deal with now. There's got to be a way to fix this mess."

"Why, Alice? Why bother? After graduation, I'm going to change, and I'll never see them again. I don't know why I was so concerned with what everyone thought of me before. It makes no sense. If anything, this will make it all easier."

"You really don't care that everyone here thinks you're as loose as powder?" Such a blunt delivery coming from Alice startled a laugh out of me.

"Okay, I guess it does bother me a little, but that doesn't matter. It will be behind us soon, right? The only thing I'm really worried about is how many of these rumors will get back to Charlie. I know he'd never believe such things about me, or any of you, but… Well, it's just embarrassing knowing the idea will be in his head, even if he thinks it's all impossible." Alice actually cracked a small smile.

"If it really bothers him, we'll help you talk him down. If you can take this so calmly, I guess I have no right to get upset over it. You're right. We'll finish of this school year, change you, and start over somewhere else. No...!" Alice's eyes glazed over and a look of horror came across her face. Perfect.

"Bella? Alice?" The sound of Angela's voice made me jump a foot, but I was already forming a plan by the time I turned to face her.

"I think Alice may have stomach flu," I blurted quickly. "She wasn't feeling well this morning, and she isn't keeping lunch down well. That's why we rushed out here. I'd better get her home… Actually, I'm not feeling so well myself… Maybe I'll just stay with her." Angela's expression was innocent enough. I saw no judgment in her eyes, no condemnation. The sight would have made me happy if I wasn't so worried about what Alice was seeing.

"If you don't make it back, I'll call and tell you the homework," she said softly. "I hope you both feel better." Shy as always, Angela made her exit.

"You might have to tell her goodbye later," Alice breathed, coming out of her vision and tugging me toward my truck. "She's a good, loyal friend." I sighed as I climbed into the passenger seat of my decrepit truck, letting Alice drive.

"How long, Alice?" Carlisle asked.

"Nine weeks. I think Victoria wants us to be prepared for the fight. She rarely ever makes concrete decisions like this. She knows I'm watching her, but she planned this anyway."

"She's suddenly confident, but why?" Jasper was sitting next to me on the couch, one arm wrapped protectively around my shoulders. I could feel his tension, but he wasn't letting it seep out to any of the others.

"It's the other two she's bringing with her," Alice explained. "They're both incredibly gifted. Annabeth can fly, and Tristan… well, he'll be the real problem. Tristan can paralyze his enemies with direct eye contact."

"I've never heard of vampires with such gifts," Eleazar murmured, astonished. "I suppose Alec's gift comes close, but…"

"Will Bella be immune?" Carlisle asked. "Can she shield us?"

"Yes," Alice replied. "Thankfully, Victoria doesn't know that. She doesn't think she can lose with Tristan. Annabeth is just there for added intimidation, really."

"Complacency will kill them all," Jasper said, and I could feel his anxiety slowly dissipating as he spoke. "Tristan will be completely flummoxed when his gift fails him. Deprived of that crutch, he'll be easy to dispose of."

"And I can shock Annabeth out of the air with Bella's help," Kate added, smiling at the thought.

"If Bella can handle both tasks at once," Eleazar said gravely. Kate's smile vanished and Jasper tensed up again.

"I'm not sure I can," I whispered, suddenly feeling very small. "Not like this. If I were changed, maybe, but that wasn't what we planned. I suppose we have to do it, to stop Victoria and these others, but that will make it harder to cover up my disappearance. Charlie will come looking…"

"No, we don't have to do it that way," Tanya said thoughtfully. "We'll just have to pick off our targets one at a time. We have the numbers. The wolves are sure to help too, so we can easily keep Victoria and Annabeth busy while we bring down Tristan first. Like Jasper said, he'll be easy to handle if we're shielded. After he's gone, then Bella and Kate can focus on Annabeth. As soon as she's on the ground, we can swarm her and Victoria."

"But what about my reach?" I asked. "How can I get close enough to protect everyone from Tristan without getting too close? And if Annabeth is flying, she'll be really difficult to reach."

"Difficult, but not impossible," Jasper said, squeezing my hand reassuringly. "She might be out of your range at times, but she'll have to come lower to the ground to attack. You can get her then."

"And Tristan?"

"We can train you," Eleazar offered. "It's unusual, training you while you're still human, but yours is an unusual case. Kate and Jasper can both project their gifts, so they can help you get a feel for it. With a little work on distance and control, you might be okay."

"And if you aren't, there are other options," Carmen added, coming to stand by her mate. "I could carry you during the fight. If Jasper, Emmett, and Eleazar stay in front of us, Tristan won't be able to reach you. I can carry you as close as is necessary and dodge out of the way quickly, if there's a problem. You'll be safe with me, bambina."

"I don't doubt that," I said, managing a small smile, "and I'll be happy to help. I'd hate to sit out of the fight with all of you in such danger." That got a whoop of laughter out of Emmett, but Carmen smiled understandingly.

"Alice, can you tell how exactly Tristan's gift works?" Carlisle suddenly asked. "If he does manage to paralyze one of us, does the effect fade?"

"No," Alice replied, her voice as dark as her expression. "His gift is very powerful and lasting. One look is all it takes, and then you're paralyzed until he kills you or someone else kills him."

A chill seemed to spread through the suddenly silent room. Jasper went to work trying to soothe everyone. I would've tried to help him, but I was suddenly paralyzed with fear. How was I going to do this? Everyone seemed to believe the coming fight would go without a hitch, but it was all riding on me. Nine weeks. I had nine weeks to prepare… So why did I get the feeling that doom was approaching much faster, as if carried on a pair of dark and deadly wings?

"Are you feeling better, Bells?" Charlie asked when I got home that evening. For a second, my mind went blank, but then I realized what he was referring to.

"Angela called?" Charlie nodded, his suspicious eyes fixed on my face. I kept my expression as bland as I could. "Good. I don't really know what happened. It must have been something Alice and I ate at lunch. By the time I got her back home, we were both really nauseated. She was sick for an hour or so, and then I was too. We each took some Pepto Bismol and we fell asleep watching a Lifetime movie. Carlisle said it was probably just a one-day bug."

For a moment, Charlie was quiet, and I knew he was deciding whether or not to be angry. When his cheeks reddened, I thought I was in for trouble, but his next words took me off guard. "Bella, were you really sick, or were you trying to get away from…? Look, Bells, I know how people here can talk, so I'm not going to jump to conclusions here, but…". I quickly realized what he was trying to say, and I blushed too. Only in Forks could news of a new scandal travel so far and fast in one day.

"Dad, it's like you just said. People here will say anything about anyone, never mind whether it's true or not. No, what everyone is saying about the Cullens and me is absolutely not true, and no, that's not why Alice and I left. We really were sick. Call Carlisle and ask him, if you want."

"Bells, if none of it is true it needs to be stopped." I could tell from the magenta color of his face that Charlie was torn between embarrassment and outrage. "I've heard some pretty nasty gossip in my time, but they're making you sound like… Well, I'm not gonna say it, but you probably know."

"Yeah, Dad, I do," I said quickly, humiliated. "Nothing I can say or do is going to fix this mess though, and you'll only make it worst if you stick in your oar. If you try anything, everyone will just take that as confirmation that it's true and you're covering it up. I already talked this over with the Cullens, okay? We all decided to just leave it alone. In a few more months, I'll graduate and leave for college, and none of this will matter. Case closed. Please, please, just drop it. I really don't want to talk about it, okay?"

Charlie seemed to accept that. We both stood there for a moment, the color slowly fading from both our faces. To my intense relief, he changed the subject when he spoke again. "Jake called, too. He was worried about you. He heard you were sick. He probably heard more than that, but…"

"Dad, please!" I cringed and stepped around him, grabbing the notepad by the phone and half-running for the stairs.

"Aren't you going to call him back?" Charlie called after me.

"I'll go see him tomorrow," I half-growled, barely swallowing the full sound in time. "It's been a while. We should talk face-to-face. I'm really tired and I still have homework to do right now."

"Pizza tonight?"

"Yeah, sure," I called just outside my room. I sped up, jogging in and quickly closing the door behind me. I let myself sink to the floor and I buried my freshly red face in my hands. "What a nightmare."


	18. Treaty and Treason

♀︎(Bella's POV)

From the moment I saw Jacob, I knew I needed to get the embarrassing stuff over with right away. "Jake, whatever you heard about the Cullens and me isn't true, okay? C'mon, you know that… Don't you?" To my relief, Jake cracked a half-smile.

"Yeah, I know you can't trust the rumor mill around here," he laughed. "Imagine if the gossips knew the real truth about all of us." That made me laugh too. I couldn't help it.

"Werewolves, vampires, Saturnos… Yeah, they'd never believe any of that."

"Whoa, wait a minute. What was that last one?"

"Later, Jake," I hedged. "If you didn't believe the rumors, why did you call? Was there anything in particular you wanted to know? Surely you didn't buy that I was actually sick." Jake raised his eyebrows and took a couple very deliberate steps toward me.

"Since when do I need a reason to call my best friend?" With no more warning than that, he closed the distance between us and yanked me off my feet into a very tight, very warm hug. For a moment I was startled by the close proximity, afraid of my new, growing thirst, but then…

"You know, you kind of stink, Jacob," I said bluntly. When he didn't immediately laugh and ask what I was talking about, I began to worry again. To my surprise, he set me down gently and backed away slowly. Too slowly, like he was afraid of something. "Jake?"

"You don't smell right either, Bella," he said warily. "And you're too cold. Not like them, but not like you either… What aren't you telling me?" Knowing he wasn't about to let me avoid the topic again, I sighed and looked around. Standing in the driveway outside the Blacks' house, I suddenly felt very exposed.

"Can we go inside, Jake?" I asked. After a moment of thought I added, "And you might want to call the rest of the pack. I feel like they should hear this directly from me, not second-hand through the pack-mind." Any sign of my old friend disappeared then. The hard-faced version of Jacob took over, and he gave me one curt nod before jogging into the trees. I knew I wasn't supposed to follow.

"I'll call Emily, in case no one is out patrolling," Billy said from the front porch. I hadn't noticed his chair in the doorway. I only caught a quick glimpse of his grave face before he wheeled himself back into the small house. Not knowing what else to do, I followed him inside. He kept his conversation with Emily short, under a minute in fact. When he was done, he swiveled around to face me again, the deep wrinkles of his face darkened further with concern.

"Emily said Sam just phased. Jake'll be able to reach him. So… How's Charlie?"

"In the dark, as always," I said frankly. "Confused and oblivious, as he always will be. How have things been with you?" Billy smiled grimly and rolled his chair over to the small couch, indicating that I should sit too. I accepted the offer with a silent nod of thanks.

"Same, same," Billy answered casually. "Been pretty quiet since the pack found you and your new friends in the forest. No sign of Victoria on our side of things. You have any news on her?"

"Yes, but that's not all I came to talk about. There's something else… It's kind of important that you know."

"Got a hold of Sam," Jacob said, ducking under the doorframe. "He'll round up the others and they'll be here soon. So, Bella… Did all those bites heal okay?"

"As well as can be expected," I said, cringing at the memory.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Jacob pressed.

"See for yourself," I said, rolling up my right sleeve a little so he could get a better look at the layered bite scars. Unable to fit on the small couch beside me, Jacob sat on the floor at my feet and took my offered hand. Even sitting on the floor, his head came up almost as high as my shoulder. "Jeez, Jake, you know steroids are bad for you, don't you?"

"Wolf thing," Jacob laughed distractedly, scrutinizing my scarred hand closely. "Is that why you're a little colder, all over?" He asked after a moment, releasing my hand. "The scars feel and smell more like their skin than yours. Is because you have so many of them now?"

"That's part of it, yes," I admitted.

"What's the other part?"

"Wait for the others, Jake." I insisted. Jake nodded sullenly and turned away from me slightly, sitting more comfortably on the floor.

Sam and the rest of the pack arrived a few minutes later. Sam entered first, his face cool and composed. The others weren't as careful to hide their feelings: wariness, curiosity, and varying degrees of hostility. Tough crowd. I looked down at my hands and absently traced one of my scars, trying to ignore them.

"Alice had a new vision of Victoria," I began. "In nine weeks, she'll be coming here with two other vampires, Tristan and Annabeth. The timing could change, of course, but we know the other two are definitely coming. Here's the problem: Annabeth can fly, and Tristan can paralyze his enemies with direct eye contact."

Some of the wolves gasped. Most of them growled lowly. I went on without giving them a chance to interrupt.

"We may need to work together to beat them, vampires and wolves. Kate, one of the vampires from Alaska, can use her gift to shock Annabeth down out of the air, if need be. Once she's pinned, she should be easy prey then."

"But how can we defeat Tristan if we can't look at him?" That was the youngest boy in the room. When I looked at him, he smiled openly. "I'm Seth, by the way. Leah here's my sister, the first she-wolf ever in our tribe. Funny, huh?"

"Focus, Seth," Sam said evenly.

"Right," Seth laughed. "Sorry."

"Same question, Bella," Jacob said, looking up at me. "Did the psychic pixie see how to do that?"

"Not exactly," I explained. "Alice's visions don't work that way. We did come up with a solution, though. It's just… well, it involves me."

"What, as a distraction?" One of the older boys asked. "I guess that could work, if he's focused on you."

"Then he'll just paralyze her. No way!" Jacob growled. I gripped his warm shoulder to stop him from arguing further.

"He can't, Jake," I said calmly, trying to calm him. "Just like Edward can't read my mind, Tristan can't paralyze me."

Jacob frowned and opened his mouth to say something else, but Sam spoke first. "How?" He asked, "What makes you immune?"

I took a deep breath and tried to meet Sam's inquiring gaze levelly. This was the part he and the rest of the pack had to understand. "Just like you have your legends, vampires have theirs," I began. "Thousands of years ago, an especially powerful type of vampire was discovered. They were called Children of Saturn. That's what I am."

"No," Jacob said flatly. "You're human. You're not a vampire yet, Bella, even if the Cullens are planning to change you."

"It doesn't work like that, Jake," I struggled to explain. "No, I'm not technically a vampire yet, but I am a Saturno, and even the vampire part is almost true. The change has kind of already started. It's all these bites. Even though most of the venom was sucked out, enough remained to make a difference. My senses are slightly sharper, my balance is a little better, and I get a little thirsty too. I keep it in check by eating rare meat, but it's there. I even have to be careful around Charlie…"

Jacob stared at me, clearly horrified. I didn't dare look at anyone else. When Jacob finally spoke, his voice was strangled with restraint, and his hands shook slightly. "Okay… So, what makes you a Saturn-thing?"

"Saturno," I said. "Most vampires don't have extra powers. Some have one power, like Jasper's ability to control emotions, or Alice's visions. Saturnos have more than one extra sense or power. I have two, and they're growing continually stronger, even before my change."

"Your powers are working now?" Seth asked eagerly. "What can you do? Can we see it?"

"Muzzle it, Seth," Leah scolded. I smiled at her cheerful little brother.

"They aren't really visible," I explained, "but I think you already did see one. When you saw us with Laurent, were you there in time to see him fall?"

"The one with the short blonde hair told you and the one with the long blonde hair to stop," Seth said, "then Laurent got up and growled at you."

"The one with the long blonde hair is Kate."

"The one with the shocking power." Seth nodded in understanding.

"Normally, she can only shock someone who touches her. One of my gifts is amplification. That day in the woods, I helped her project her gift out to him. My other gift is a shield of sorts. At first, we all thought I was just immune to Edward's gift, though that was strange too. The truth is, very few gifts do work on me. Jasper and Alice are rare exceptions. Their gifts work on me because their gifts work physically, or outside the body entirely. Most vampiric gifts only work mentally, inside the mind. That's what my shield protects me from. Mental gifts. Like most vampires, Tristan's gift only works in your mind. I've been working on projection, so I should be able to protect at least a small group of you long enough for you to kill Tristan… At least, we hope so. That seems to be our only chance."

For a long moment, no one spoke. No one moved. Billy's wheelchair creaked when he shifted in his seat. He was the first to speak. "The treaty doesn't cover this."

The treaty. I squashed the urge to run out of the room and I tried to respond with some semblance of confidence. I'd gone over this with Carlisle. I knew I was speaking to the chief of the Quileute tribe. I had to hold it together and make my voice heard. "Billy Black," I began formally, "I've been given permission to speak on behalf of the whole Cullen family, if you will permit me?"

Billy straightened in his chair and nodded once. The very air in the room seemed to change then. The wolves sat in unison, watching Billy and me attentively. Billy suddenly looked like their chief, not just Jacob's father. Nothing about his appearance had actually changed, but his demeanor changed dramatically. He projected a surprising kind of majesty that momentarily took my breath away. I instinctively wanted to look to Jacob for support, but I knew I couldn't. The time for socializing had passed. This was strictly business.

"I told you my change has already started," I began. "The Cullens did not start it. I was bitten by the vampire, James, and then by Laurent. The damage they did is irreversible. I will never again be fully human. If the Cullens are permitted to complete my change, I will be a full vampire and part of their family. If the tribe refuses to allow the Cullens to complete my change, I will still be a part of their family in a way, but I will be an unknown entity. As far as we know, all Saturnos in history have either been changed or killed. I am, in fact, a part of an endangered species. It may be that I am the only one left on my kind. While I remain between human and vampire form, the course of my life is unpredictable. Though I still eat human food, my thirst is slowly growing. These scars I have shimmer in the sunlight. My lifespan is no longer predictable. In this form, I may only live as long as your average human, but I might live much, much longer. What if I age too slowly? What if my thirst continues to grow, even though I'm not strong enough to hunt animals like the rest of my family? Do I starve myself? Is it possible for me to starve to death? What if it isn't? What becomes of me then?" I gasped. There was a knot forming in my chest and I could feel myself starting to cry.

"Billy, I'm scared," I confessed. "My family is scared for me, and yes, they are my family. I've been told I might attract trouble even after my change, because of what I am, but that trouble will be much easier to deal with if I'm a full vampire. While I'm stuck in this strange kind of purgatory, I can't help anyone. I can't even help myself. If I am changed, I and the rest of my family will continue to obey the rules of the treaty, but we have to know it will still be intact. Please, Billy." I turned to Sam, then. Technically, he had just as much power in the tribe as Billy. "Please, Sam. Make this one exception. Let the Cullens bite me. Let them complete my change. Leave the treaty intact, and we can fight against our mutual enemies instead of each other. If you find it so hard to trust the other Cullens, trust me. Allow my change so I can protect you. Please…"

That was it. That was all I could say. I waited for their answer with bated breath, fighting back tears while seconds that felt like hours ticked past. Billy exchanged a glance with Sam and the alpha wolf nodded once. Billy looked back at me and leaned forward, extending his right hand to me. I shook his hand tentatively, marveling at how much cooler his grip felt than his son's. He smiled and said, "The Cullens may change you, and you alone. The treaty will remain intact."

I returned Billy's smile and gave his hand a grateful squeeze. I let go and settled back into the small couch, but Billy was still watching me intently. "Bella, we'll allow you to come into our land as long as you remain in this part-human form, but we can't take chances with your blood-thirst. At least one member of the pack must always be with you while you're here. Does that sound reasonable enough?"

"Yes, of course," I replied immediately.

"Once you're fully changed, you won't be allowed across our border," Billy continued. "Not without permission. If need be, we might consider revising the treaty later. For now, your change is an exception to the rule, not a change of the rule. Understood?"

I nodded fervently. Billy nodded once.

"Good," one of the older boys said. "Can we go eat now?" Several of the boys chuckled, though Leah still scowled. The tension in the air depleted rapidly.

"Go on," Jacob chuckled. "I'll take escort duty."

"I should be getting back anyway," I said, standing and sidling out of the crowded room. Jacob got up and followed me. The pack trickled out after us, some of them immediately phasing, though some stayed in human form long enough to call out, "See ya, Saturno."

I expected Jacob to get in my truck with me, but he vaulted into the back instead. "Just give me a minute," he said in response to my silent question. "I need to think."

"Okay," I said, my voice very small. Jacob didn't seem to hear me. I got in the truck and left him alone with his thoughts, grateful that the roar of the engine allowed me to finish crying without him hearing me. By the time I reached the border, my eyes were dry and my breath was steady. Jacob came around to the passenger door and I planted a smile on my face, ready to give him a politely indifferent, "See you later". He opened the door and climbed inside.

"Can I come the rest of the way with you?" He asked. "I want to hear a little more about this Saturno stuff from actual vampires." He grimaced. "I never though I'd actually want to speak to vamps, but there it is. So?"

"Sure," I said, and I continued to drive. Jacob shifted uncomfortably and I added, "Don't worry, I'll protect you." That startled a bark of laughter out of him.

"That's the weirdest part. You really could, couldn't you?"

I had to think about that one. "Well, I was joking, but… I could shield you from Kate's gift, but the others wouldn't be handicapped by me. They could just toss me aside if they really wanted to get at you. Hypothetically, of course."

"Of course," Jacob said, smiling easily. He was changing back into my old friend again.

"So, you're okay with all this?" I had to ask. "With me?"

"It's not like I can change it either way," he said, shrugging. "Like you said, it's too late. So I guess I'll just have to get used to the idea."

"Will you?" I prodded.

Jacob's smile faded, but he slung one warm arm around my shoulders. "I think so," he answered honestly. "You'll still be Bella, anyway. That won't change."

"No, it won't," I promised.

Jacob spent the rest of the drive telling me who everyone in the pack was, and when each new member changed. He was finishing the story of Seth's change when we reached the Cullen house. I automatically drove around to park outside the garage and was alarmed to see the window protectors on the house were down. Something was wrong. I jumped out of the truck and ran around to the front door. Jacob easily kept pace with me, tense and alert.

"Is Victoria coming?" I asked Alice the moment I saw her. She shook her head. She looked like she would be crying if that were possible. Carlisle, Esme, Eleazar, and Carmen looked sick. Everyone else looked furious. Jasper darted over to me and yanked me into his arms. His firm grip only made me more anxious. He didn't bother trying to calm me down.

"Edward went to the Volturi," Jasper finally managed to tell me, though he refused to release me. "He told them what you are."


	19. Irwin

♀︎(Bella's POV)

Jacob had many questions he wanted answered about Edward, the Volturi, and Saturnos. Carlisle and Eleazar explained everything to him while I sat on the couch with Jasper. He sat on my right while Emmett was a solid bulwark on my left, ready to pounce on anyone and anything that came near me. By the time explanations were over, only Jasper's calming influence kept Jacob from phasing on the spot. Fuming, Jacob stomped out of the house and phased as soon as Jasper released him. While he ran to alert the wolves, Alice stood and began to pace. Until that point, I'd fallen into a somewhat trance-like state, lost in my own thoughts. Alice's odd behavior brought me back to the present.

"Alice?" I asked, my voice soft and distant. I blinked and cleared my throat. "Alice, did you see something else?"

"Yes and no," Alice said, still pacing. Very odd behavior in a vampire. "I'm still trying to see, but…" She kept pacing and she didn't say anything else.

"Alice?" Carlisle prodded.

Alice stopped pacing abruptly and turned to face Carlisle, nodding decisively. "We need to go to Volterra," she said. "All of us. Edward's trying to make some kind of deal with the Volturi. They're still talking, so I can't see the outcome. I just know we'll all be better off if we can tell the Volturi our side of the story. We have to hurry, though. It's a long way to Italy, and we don't want the Volturi thinking we're trying to hide. If we're upfront with them, they have no reason to punish us. We've done nothing wrong. Technically, we didn't even break the secrecy law. The pack knew about us from their own legends, and Bella's not just any human. She's a Saturno, so she's really an exception to the rule."

"I don't know if they'll see it that way, Alice," Eleazar said ruefully. Alice started to argue, but Eleazar raised a hand to stop her. "Nonetheless," he said, "I agree with you. That is our best course of action."

"Charlie," I said immediately. "What do we tell him?"

"We'll tell him we're taking you camping," Alice answered, not missing a beat. "Everyone in town believes we go camping all the time. No one should question our taking you along, not even Charlie."

"Finally, the rumor mill works to our advantage," I grumbled. Emmett laughed. Alice cracked a small smile.

"You'd be surprised just how often it does, Bella," Esme said, reaching across Jasper to pat my arm lightly.

Volterra. The worst place for a human Saturno to be. Still, I had a sizable guard of my own to protect me. Eleazar and Carlisle entered the foreboding castle at the head of our group, following the diminutive blond vampire, Jane, and the mountainous guard, Felix. Carmen and Esme entered next. I followed them, flanked by Jasper and Emmett. Kate and Rosalie walked close behind me. Tanya and Irina brought up the rear. Everyone around me moved in such a way as to obscure me from view. Only my scent and my heartbeat hinted at my position within the throng. Of course, that meant I couldn't see anything either. When we stepped out of a long, dark antechamber, Aro's enthusiastic greeting took me by surprise.

"Eleazar! Carlisle! My dear friends, welcome! It has been too long!"

The crowd around me shifted just enough for me to glimpse Aro. The vampire from the painting in Carlisle's study was standing mere feet from me. Four vampires followed him as he approached us, seemingly concerned for his safety. Aro was unperturbed. He eagerly grabbed Carlisle's hand, lingering for a minute or so. When he finally released Carlisle's hand, he immediately took up Eleazar's, smiling congenially even while his cloudy red eyes gazed intensely at some unseen image. He was reading their minds, just as Jasper had warned me. After another minute, he stepped back.

"Marvelous," he breathed in his wispy voice. "Simply marvelous. It really has been too long. You've both done so much since last I saw you. Just look how many others of our kind have taken to your lifestyle! Simply fascinating. I've never been so pleased to be proven wrong. I am so glad you've found happiness… Of course, that isn't all you've found, is it?"

Even I could hear the clear order to move out of the way.

Only Jasper stayed beside me, keeping one of my hands firmly in his. The rest of our group parted. Only then did I see our terrifying predicament: The hall we'd entered was lined wall-to-wall with vampires. We were outnumbered three-to-one. No wonder Aro was so completely at ease.

"Bella," he sighed almost longingly. "You honor us with your presence. Please come forward, so everyone may look upon you."

Another order, not a request.

I reluctantly released Jasper's hand and walked forward. When at last I stepped clear of my vampire family, Aro stepped forward and took my hand. I instinctively tensed, and not purely out of fear. Though Aro's grip was firm, his skin was abnormally cold, and it felt strangely brittle. Alien, in some way. His freakish skin and eyes only made him more intimidating. I shuddered involuntarily, but Aro was preoccupied. He still held my hand and his cloudy red eyes held mine, but frustration soon became apparent on his features. What had he been expecting?

"You must forgive my curiosity, dear Bella," he said, finally releasing me. "I was warned, of course, that even I would be unable to penetrate your shield, but I had to see it for myself." Stepping back, Aro bowed slightly. "Benvenuta, Isabella."

"Benvenuta, Isabella," the room chorused. All the vampires lining the walls bowed in welcome. I took an involuntary step back, unnerved. The next voice I heard only made matters worse.

"It's okay, Bella," Edward said softly. He was standing near the other vampires from the painting, Marcus and Caius. "Saturnos are honored here."

"Indeed, Bella, we welcome you with open arms!" Aro cried reverently. "Such a joy it is to see a Saturno alive!"

"Excuse me, Aro?" That was Alice. She walked forward until she stood beside me, ignoring the warning glares from the nearest members of the Volturi Guard.

"Alice!" Aro's smile grew even wider. "Benvenuta!"

"Thank you, Aro," Alice replied with a courteous smile. "Might I ask what arrangement you finally came to with Edward? I only saw a small part of your discussion, you see. I don't want there to be any misunderstandings."

I marveled at Alice's boldness. Even phrased delicately, that was a very forthright request.

"Oh, of course, how rude of me," Aro half-laughed. "I was so eager to see young Bella, I forgot your reason for coming here. Yes, we do have a few matters still to sort out, and we certainly have no further need of such an audience. Brothers, let us return to the residential wing. I'm sure our friends will be much more comfortable there."

The residential wing was a cross between a modern, luxurious hotel, and Versailles. The stone tiles on the floor were polished to a soft sheen. Tapestries, paintings, and other ornaments adorned every wall. Shining suits of armor were stationed at every corner, and stained glass mosaics covered all the windows. It was beautiful and extravagant, but it felt like a gilded cage to me. I kept my eyes down and let Jasper guide me forward. I didn't expect him to try calming me. He was too busy staring murderously at Edward.

When we stopped walking, we stood before a large wooden door. A large V was engraved in the dark wood, each point accented by a different jewel: An emerald on the top left, a ruby on the top right, and a large diamond on the bottom point.

"Our quarters," Aro announced. "The other rooms would have been too small for our needs, but I'm sure you'll feel most comfortable here."

The three Volturi elders occupied three very large suites connected at the center by a large, circular room with a massive round table at its center. An elegant crystal chandelier hung over the table, its light reflecting off the many mirrors along the walls. Aro walked around to the far side of the table and opened his arms invitingly. "Please, have a seat," he said. "We have much to discuss, and one of us still requires sleep." Aro smiled at his little joke. I forced a laugh.

"Not so much, now," I confessed conversationally. "Since my recent encounter with Laurent, I can get by on very little sleep."

"Ah, yes," Aro sighed, shaking his head sadly. "Laurent. A savage and a fool. It is from others like him that we must protect you, dear Bella. That was precisely Edward's proposal, though I'm sure you still doubt his motives. Come sit by me, Bella, and we'll see if we can sort out this egregious misunderstanding."

As instructed, I sat beside Aro. Jasper was allowed to sit on my other side. The remainder of our group was forced to spread out. From my left sat Jasper, Alec, Alice, Kate, Jane, Tanya, Irina, Rosalie, Demetri, Emmett, Felix, Carlisle, Esme, Chelsea, Eleazar, Carmen, Marcus, Renata, and Caius. Edward sat on Aro's right side. I couldn't help but notice the way Jane and Alec glared at me. Aro stared at me like a beloved pet.

"Now, Bella," he began with a placating smile "I understand how betrayed you must feel right now, but I assure you betrayal was never Edward's intention. He came to us purely out of concern for your safety, and one only needs to look at your many bite scars to see why. Raising a Saturno is a dangerous business, and while your family and friends here have done a remarkable job, the fact remains that they are ill-equipped. Our facility is much stronger, and our Guard much more formidable. Edward believes you will be much safer among us, and my brothers and I are inclined to agree."

Aro waited patiently for my response, but I was struggling to breathe normally. Edward did betray me. He practically sold me to the Volturi. They expected me to join them. Was refusal even an option? I had to try.

"Is this something you insist upon?" I asked timidly. "Or do I have a choice in the matter?"

That clearly wasn't the response Aro was hoping for. His smile faded.

"Well, I certainly hope you'll join us eventually," he said. "Edward already has." That surprised me. I was the one being sold, after all. Why did Edward join them? "If you remain obdurate, however, I suppose other arrangements can be made."

"You don't have to join us, but you must remain here," Caius proposed.

"Why?" I gasped before I could stop myself, too alarmed to be tactful.

"Trouble follows you as ducklings follow their mother," Caius responded coolly. "For your own safety, and for the safety of others, we must keep an eye on you. We must also see that you are properly changed, and changed soon. We can't have you wandering around in your current state much longer. You are too conspicuous."

I gaped at Caius in horror, unable to find words strong enough to express my outrage.

"May we compromise?" Carlisle asked, his voice as polite and reasonable as ever. "What if we agree to bring Bella here every other weekend? That way, you can see any changes in her condition for yourselves, and we can maintain our cover in Forks. As you know, we plan to change Bella after her graduation, so the humans who know her won't be alarmed by her sudden disappearance. We will continue training Bella in the use of her gifts, and we will settle things with Victoria. We will bring her here when it's time to change her."

Aro's smile returned.

"Ah, my dear friend, Carlisle," Aro laughed delightedly. "You can always be counted on to come up with a reasonable solution for all. Indeed, most reasonable. Wouldn't you agree, Caius? Marcus?" The question was apparently rhetorical. Aro continued without waiting for a response. The look that Caius gave me said he did not agree one bit. "Naturally, you will be expected to spend the entire weekend here when you come. You will be given your own rooms here. Of course, you need not all come together, though you will always be welcome. No fighting. No leaving prematurely. You will see that the humans near you believe you are on camping trips and nothing more. You may tell the shape-shifters of our arrangement as long as they do not interfere, and as long as they also agree to tell no one. There. That's settled."

Aro spoke very fast. I blinked, trying to absorb all he'd said. The words 'no fighting' stood out. Before I could ask what exactly he meant by that, he stood and looked down at Edward.

"Why don't you show your old family to the guest rooms, Edward? Heidi will be arriving with our dinner soon. We'll make arrangements for the rest of you as need arises, but you should all be comfortable in the meantime."

The short walk to the guest rooms was tense. Edward led the way, and it must have been an act of sheer will to turn his back to the rest of us. Jasper, Emmett, Rosalie, Kate, Tanya, and Irina were glaring daggers at him. Carlisle, Esme, Eleazar, and Carmen were conversing very quietly. Alice appeared to be searching the future for something. I kept a tight hold on Jasper's hand. The words 'no fighting' kept replaying in my head like a broken record. I wouldn't let my family get into any more trouble. Still, I couldn't pass up the chance for a little verbal sparring. Surely that was permitted.

"So, how did you get roped into this?" I asked Edward acidly. "I would think you'd be rewarded for selling me out, not punished. Why did they make you join?"

"They didn't make me join," Edward replied softly, not turning to look at me. "I chose to join them. I never would have considered it before, but my old family disowned me."

"Don't play the pity card," I growled. "You brought that on yourself. You tried to kidnap me. When that failed, you asked someone else to do it for you."

"No one is kidnapping you, Bella."

"They're imprisoning me. Close enough."

"You aren't a prisoner either," Edward countered. "I never would have allowed that."

"Allowed that?" Jasper interjected scathingly. "Once a slave is sold, the seller has no say in what becomes of them. I know how such things work, Edward. I saw it as a human and I saw it again tonight."

Edward didn't respond. He kept walking for a full minute before he finally stopped and turned to face us. His expression was pained.

"That was not my intention," He nearly croaked, strangled by some emotion. "I just want Bella to be safe and happy."

"Then you're your own worst enemy," I whispered. The betrayal cut so deep.

Edward said nothing. He stared at me for a long, tense moment. Finally, he looked away. "I don't know why Aro asked me to escort you," he said, his voice taking on a formal tone. "I can hear someone else nearby. Irwin!"

I gasped at the name. Alice froze. Irwin appeared quite literally out of nowhere. He materialized in front of us without so much as a sound. Alice stared at him, effectively dumbstruck. Irwin was only an inch or two shorter than Jasper. His appearance was of a man in his mid-twenties. His curly auburn hair was pulled back in a short ponytail. He had high, defined cheekbones, and a strong jaw. His nose was long and slightly wide at the tip, softening the strong angles of the rest of his face. His eyes were wide and kind, though red. His stance was strong, but not deliberately intimidating. He inclined his head in greeting and smiled politely at Edward.

"Is there a problem?" His voice was midrange for a man, warm and just a little hesitant. Was he shy?

"Would you please show our guests to their rooms?" Edward asked. "Aro asked me to do it, but I just remembered another errand I must attend to. You're new here too. I'm sure you understand."

"Of course," Irwin responded, still smiling politely. "Go on, Edward. Aro won't hear of this from me."

"Thank you," Edward said with transparent gratitude. He quickly departed and Irwin turned to face us directly.

"Hello," he murmured cordially. "Glad to meet you all. The guest rooms are just around the corner, if you'll please…" Irwin blinked dazedly and his voice trailed off. He was staring at Alice, and she had yet to stop staring at him.

"Thank you, Irwin, but I think we'll manage," I said. "If they're just around the corner…" Jasper realized my intention immediately. He stepped around Irwin and started walking down the hall. Grabbing Kate's hand, I tugged emphatically. She took the hint and came with me. Everyone but Alice and Irwin followed us. As we rounded the corner, I looked back in time to see Alice take a tentative step toward Irwin. She extended her hand to him and he took it. I took Jasper's hand and pulled him into one of the many guest rooms.


	20. Russian Roulette

♀︎(Bella's POV)

All in all, Edward could've caused worse damage. I was contract bound to the Volturi, but at least Alice had found her mate, and that union had freed Irwin from Chelsea's loyalty-binding power, giving us a neutral person to talk to. True, by his own morals Irwin was still duty bound to serve the Volturi, and he saw no reason to sever that connection just because he'd found his mate, particularly when our contract meant they would see each other often. We were all still wary of the Volturi, but we couldn't fault Irwin for taking his duty seriously when there was no glaring reason not to. As I'd originally surmised, Irwin was quite shy, even more so than Jasper had originally seemed. His teleporting was quite a shock. The speed of all the vampires around me was startling at times, but Irwin could literally disappear and reappear out of nowhere, bringing up to two people with him at a time, and he could cover enormous distances, crossing oceans in mere minutes. Of course, being the dangerously curious cat I am, I'd asked him to teleport with me and Jasper so I could see what it was like. Let's just say I'll remember never to eat right before teleportation again.

Letting Aro witness my willingness to 'play' was a mistake. After recovering from my first teleportation experience, he'd asked me to try amplifying Irwin's power, to see if I could enable Irwin to carry more than two people at once. To Aro's transparent delight, it worked. With amplification, Irwin could carry three to four people with him as long as I was one of them, as long as I had the energy to provide steady amplification. It was an exhaustive effort, so we rarely pulled off teleportation of four. While Jasper and the rest of my vampire family seethed and worried in silence, Aro tested my shield against his entire Guard. As Jasper suspected, none of their gifts worked on me, Marcus and Irwin the only exceptions. In private, we did wonder if my shield at least hampered Marcus' ability a little, because when asked he said he still saw a mating bond between Edward and me, which none of us believed to be true. 

Though her inability to hurt me with her gift had infuriated Jane at first, I was pleasantly surprised to see, even without Jasper's help, how quickly those feelings faded. At first, Jane's odd attraction to me put my family on edge, but Jasper assured them that he could sense no malicious intent there. She was just curious about me, and despite her deep devotion to the Volturi, she seemed more at ease around me than she was with anyone else but her twin brother, Alec.

"Maybe she likes that I'm not afraid of her," I wondered aloud on the long plane ride back to Washington. "Her power probably slips when she's irritated or angry, even without her deliberately trying to cause harm. It's a defensive instinct, right? She probably likes that she doesn't have to worry about slipping with me. I don't instinctively avoid her. Even Felix and some of the other big Guards keep their distance when they can. I'm not saying I like her⏤something about the Volturi makes me feel uneasy, and it has nothing to do with their diet⏤I can empathize with Jane though, if my assumption is correct. She probably feels so isolated and alone, poor thing. Everyone but Alec, Aro, Caius, and Marcus is afraid of her. Despite Chelsea's power, that loneliness has to eat away at her at least a little. She just wants a friend."

"Perceptive and compassionate as always," Jasper murmured lovingly, pulling me closer and softly kissing my forehead. "Your heart of gold is already warming one of the coldest, hardest hearts there. You hit the nail on the head, darlin'. She feels drawn to you like a friend. A part of her really wants to reach out to you, but those feelings are drowned out by her feelings toward the Volturi, both genuine and manufactured."

"Why do they insist on using Chelsea to bind everyone?" I had to ask. "They're the leaders of the vampire world. I'm sure plenty of vampires would voluntarily join their Guard. Just look at Irwin. Yes, his teleportation means distance isn't really an issue for him and Alice, but he told us he's staying on the Guard simply because he feels honored to have been chosen, and because he feels it's irresponsible and disrespectful to walk away from his job so casually. The worst times of war among vampires and other supernaturals have passed, so why do they insist on forcing loyalty and servitude?"

"Grudges," Eleazar answered simply. "You are gifted with the power of amplification, cara mia, but everything is amplified when you become a vampire. Senses sharpen, mental capacity and physical capabilities increase, emotions run even deeper, and deep-seeded grudges are life-altering and can linger, fester, and grow within our kind for millennia on end."

"Think of your current situation with Victoria, bambina," Carmen added, holding her ex-Volterran mate's hand. "All this bloodthirst and suffering because she holds you partly responsible for the death of her mate. You know the phrase, 'Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned,' do you not? Well the vampire version is, 'Hell hath no fury like a mated vampire bereft of their true mate.' Victoria is far from the first living vampire to lose their mate in such a violent fashion. Anyone desperate for vengeance is dangerous. Such violent desperation coupled with an endless amount of time to wait for the right moment to exact said revenge, that is far worse."

"Just look at Peter and Charlotte," Jasper tacked on for example. "Crazy as things are becoming, I have a feeling you'll meet them soon, but you know some of their story already: Peter and I were among very few vampires to be kept by Maria past our newborn year. She spared Peter partly because of his gift, and partly because the persistent bastard had somehow managed to form a close rapport with me, her unbeatable second in command. When the day came for Char's group to be culled though, he was willing to throw all that away to save her, even if it meant taking me on, surely losing and being tortured to death by Maria for insubordination. Luckily for him, he'd become for me what you seem to be becoming for Jane: a light in the darkness. I let him go, and I was tortured in his place for it, but I never held it against him. I felt what he was feeling; I got a taste of what a vampire's love for their true mate felt like, and I knew even Maria and I would have a terrible fight on our hands if we'd dared to challenge that determination and devotion."

"None of the Brothers were ever bound by Chelsea after they found her," Eleazar continued. "Not until the Children of the Moon killed Didyme. As it was, Caius and Aro flew into rages and hunted werewolves to near complete extinction, but Marcus had to be subdued. His rage was like a hurricane. He not only helped kill werewolves, but he destroyed anything and everything that came between him and the murderers of his beloved. He nearly killed Aro's mate, Sulpicia, just because she went to him in an attempt to soothe him when all he wanted was blood and death. That's when they had Chelsea tightly, deeply bind him. You've seen the result: Bound to the earth, but bereft of the sun, all he knows is an endless abyss of darkness and shadows. That could be why he too made a rare effort to interact with you, Bella. Your bonds must be a bright and beautiful sight to behold; you've such a loving, gentle soul."

"Thank you," I murmured wearily against Jasper's shoulder. Despite my interest in the conversation, the last two days in Volterra had been trying, and I was losing the battle against exhaustion. Jasper caressed my hair and forced my surrender.

Our homecoming was not as soothing as I wish it could've been. There were no problems with Charlie. I told him well-rehearsed stories about my 'camping trip', and I in turn was regaled with fishing stories. He, along with Harry and Sue Clearwater, had brought home enough fish to fill our freezer and to keep the wolves fed for a couple days. I went to school and continued to ignore the salacious, vicious gossip, and I ate lunch with only Alice, though Angela did make her usual effort to come say hello and chat for a little while. The real trouble came when we called the Quileutes to discuss our contract with the equivocal 'kings' of the vampire world.

"Edward did what?!" Jacob practically howled in outrage at the tribal council meeting held about a week after our return. Carlisle, Eleazar, Jasper, and I were all allowed to attend, as there were plenty of wolves present to adequately outnumber us. There were twelve. Leah was still the only she-wolf, but some of the new boys were unbearable young, only fourteen or so.

"I can't begin to explain what's gotten into Edward's head," Carlisle confessed, "nor can I begin to apologize for it, but I don't see any real harm coming to your tribe from his actions. You already agreed to allow the completion of Bella's transformation, and that is what Aro demands. We wanted to inform you of the proceedings, but none of our plans have really changed. Alice checked again, and though we no longer have the nine weeks anticipated, we still have three or four weeks to prepare for the arrival of Victoria, Tristan, and Annabeth. We assume they're coming on a weekday, because she sees herself and Bella running out of the school cafeteria to join us."

"As painful as it was to watch, I have to admit Aro's experiments with Bella's powers furthered her training immensely in a very short time," Jasper said. "We didn't bring it to Aro's attention just yet, and I don't think he noticed, but she's able to consistently project her shield now, not just her amplification."

"I can only push it out a few feet around me," I explained, "but with a little more practice, I can probably extend my reach a little further."

"Alice can't see much of the actual fight since you're involved, but Bella's powers, my experience, and our numbers should make it child's play, really," Jasper said with a smug smile, pulling me into a one-armed hug. "Then we can put all this behind us, change Bella in Volterra, and bring her home after letting her toss Eddie around a little." Several of the wolves laughed and Jacob relaxed significantly.

"You don't think they'll come here to 'observe' her, do you?" Sam questioned. He was still sitting rigidly on a large tree stump. Emily moved to sit in his lap, and she ran her fingers through his short hair soothingly. He leaned into her touch. I saw Leah flinch and look away. Jacob had told me about that terrible love triangle. As if it wasn't bad enough to lose her love to his imprint, they had to share the pack mind since her change. There was no escape from their heartache and guilt. Leah was quickly becoming the Jane of the pack, hardening her heart and lashing out at others as a coping mechanism, masking and denying her pain and longing for love and companionship, for true friends and an imprint of her own.

"We can't be sure, but we don't believe so," Eleazar answered Sam's question. "They really want Bella in their Guard, but they didn't outright insist upon her joining. They only want to keep an eye on her while she's human and see if she's a manageable newborn. As long as we keep to our contract and regularly bring her to them, they should have no reason to come to her. At most, they might send Irwin, and he's Alice's mate now, therefore bound by the treaty here. You need not fear him."

"And his diet?" Paul growled.

"He's already converted," Carlisle said proudly. "Since meeting Alice, he's hunted with us twice, and he gave Alice his word he will continue to feed only from animals. Alice has seen it, and the Volturi will allow it."

"Good," Billy murmured solemnly. I looked at him and frowned, suddenly struggling not to cry.

"Charlie can't know," I said sadly. "We'll have to fake my death, so he won't look for me. You'll all help him and protect him, won't you? Please, for me?"

"Of course, Bella," Sue Clearwater answered, seated by her husband and children. "I'll make sure he's well-fed, too," she added, already knowing what I was thinking about. "He won't be alone, sweetheart." Leah blinked, startled by her mother's endearment for me, but her fifteen-year-old little brother grinned at me.

"Have you seen the inside of your freezer?" Seth asked, his grin widening. "There's a big bag of breading and seasoning Dad likes in the cupboard too, already blended. Even your dad can't screw up dip, flip, and fry." Everyone laughed and Sue swatted her son's arm lightly.

"And I'll make sure he gets his fruits and vegetables, too," she assured me. "Don't worry."

I smiled at Sue and a couple tears of gratitude escaped my eyes, but they felt funny⏤thick and a little viscous⏤and the trails they left down my cheeks tingled a little. Sensing my confusion, Jasper gave me an inquiring look. I caught one of my tears on my finger and held it to his lips. The wolves watched our odd behavior with varying degrees of confusion, intrigue, and disgust. They all tensed and disgust won out for a moment when Jasper took my fingertip in his mouth and tasted the tear. Jasper's eyes widened as I drew my hand back.

"Saltwater and venom," he said, sounding simultaneously awed and deeply disturbed. "Hybrid tears, another change. Your tears were normal back in Volterra. This is new, which can only mean you're actively changing." Carlisle and Eleazar looked awed and disturbed in turn. I wiped off and offered more tears to them. They both lightly touched the strange liquid on my hand and tasted it from their own fingertips. Their reactions mirrored Jasper's. Their eyes widened and they both nodded in confirmation. I looked down at a bowl of fresh dinner rolls right in front of me and recoiled. Jacob had told me vampire venom was poisonous to wolves.

"No one touch that bread!" I screeched, panicked. Recollecting myself, I grabbed the bowl and dumped the bread in the small bonfire before us. Sure enough, even my eyes could see tiny spirals of purple in the smoke. Everyone else saw it too. "The bowl was right in front of me," I babbled. "Some of my tears must have splashed them, I'm sorry…" Comprehension dawned on everyone's faces.

"Well, that's just great," Jared grumbled, though he was clearly fighting a smile. "Poisonous tears. Are we counting that as a third demi-vamp power?" Carlisle, Eleazar, Jasper, and I grimaced.

"No," I groaned. "Just another dangerous inconvenience."

"Actively changing?" Billy asked, "How is that possible? I thought the going theory was that all those bites caused the partial change, but the vampire venom didn't spread. She wasn't bitten again, was she?" Billy was starting to sound angry. "If she's actively changing, she should be writhing on the ground in agony with the venom spreading through her bloodstream. How is this possible?" He growled. The three full-vampires and I exchanged wary glances. We had no idea.

"Hybrid tears?" Aro breathed when we reported back to him about a week after our meeting with the tribe, per our contract. He'd just finished reading Carlisle's mind. I was grateful he didn't try for Jasper's. The thought of our most intimate moments playing out before his eyes like a detailed movie made my skin crawl. "Any other changes?" He inquired, though he already knew the answer from the reading. "Any increase in bloodthirst or further sensory development?"

"No," I answered. "My scars sparkle a little brighter in the sunlight now, but that's it, and I keep the scars covered anyway."

"You'd better," Caius growled, leveling a cold glare at me. Jasper bit back the growl I felt rumbling in his chest in response.

"Oh, and there's been some progress with my gifts," I said to Aro, trying to inject some pride and excitement into my voice, attempting to break the sudden tension in the air. Jasper was projecting, and not in a good way. I squeezed his hand as hard as I could and hurriedly looked for my intended target. "I can project both a little further now, but I think that has more to do with my Major's training than anything else." Found her. "Go on, Jane, try it on Jasper now." Jasper tensed for a moment, but then immediately relaxed, dropping my hand and stepping about six feet away from me. Jasper's eyes held mine, conveying his confidence, pride, and trust in me, all in one glance. I focused on pushing my shield out around him. I knew I'd succeeded when I heard a startled gasp from Jane and a delighted laugh from Aro, followed by light applause. To my immense surprise, I turned and saw it was Jane applauding. Marcus may have even cracked a half-smile, though I might've imagined that last part. Projecting so far made me a little dizzy.

"Brava, Isabella! Completamente magnifico!" Aro gushed. "Your training is indeed coming along wonderfully, cara mia. Major Whitlock, I thank you both for your diligence." I flinched at Aro's endearment for me. It was okay when Carmen or Eleazar said it, but I really didn't like Aro referring to me as his anything, even if he was just being polite. Though I'd used Jasper's wartime name to remind the Volterrans that my mate was to be respected, not over looked, I didn't like Aro calling him that either, because when he said it he made it sound like an insult… or a threat. I bristled. This time, Jasper was the one to jump in and diffuse the potential situation.

"Thank you, Sir," he said, keeping his tone polite as he stepped closer and reclaimed my hand. Despite the tone, I noticed his deliberate non-use of the familiar 'Aro' or the Guard-respectful 'Master'. He was tactfully engaging Aro in a second, mostly unspoken conversation. Aro was saying he didn't like sharing his toys. Jasper was challenging his claim. Neither man pressed the issue further. "We've worked very hard, but it is still a strain on Bella," Jasper continued. "As you can see, her eyes are very dark brown now. She needs a hunt."

Jane gasped at the loose phrasing, "She hunts for herself, already?" Jasper smiled wryly.

"My apologies, Ma'am," he said, laying the charming accent on thick. "I was using the term loosely, but I suppose there has been one further development. It started as a joke really, a bet between Bella and Emmett. Long story short, she gave up her usual rare steak and drank blood straight from a lion Emmett brought to her. Carlisle and I worried she might still be human enough to become ill, but with Alice's reassurance she tried it and took it quite well. She can't hunt for herself yet, but drinking blood straight from the source does seem to keep her thirst at bay longer and strengthen her powers, so we've taken to routinely bringing a kill back for Bella."

"I always end up sharing, though," I added. "I've only ever finished a small fox by myself, but the bigger kills are too much. I won't let an animal's blood go to waste if it has to die for me, so someone always shares with me, usually Jasper." An idea struck, and the words were out before I could over-think it, "Curious, Jane?" I offered. Her scarlet eyes widened further. Every other red-eyed vampire gaped or wrinkled their noses in distaste.

"Absolutely not!" Jane protested hotly, though even I could see she was fighting a smile. "I'd rather eat dirt. From what I hear, it tastes about the same."

"Again, blame Emmett," Jasper interjected, taking the mood shift and running with it.

"And Felix," I laughed, remembering Emmett's story. It was another prank of course, and a bold one involving the intimidating Guard. I looked over at the mountainous vampire in question. "I can't believe you believed Emmett when he said raccoons taste the most like humans, because they forage through their trash and eat the same food. The word 'trash' should have clued you in there." Jane and Alec laughed, and Demetri and a few other Guards chuckled. For some reason, Aro looked a little unnerved.

"Well, by all means, go do what you must," he dismissed us. "Make yourselves at home again. Much to do this weekend."

Emmett clapped Jasper on the shoulder as we left the throne room, "You two go on to your room. We'll find something good for ya." He winked at me and ran off with the others, leaving Jasper and me alone to calm each other down properly.

The next morning, I was awoken at about four o'clock by what sounded like a cowbell. Jasper looked over at his phone on the bedside table. "Text from Peter," he explained, gently disentangling himself from me and grabbing the phone. He froze, and I instinctively tensed with him. He showed me the text.

Call the mutts and tell them we're on our way. We should get there just in time.

Before I could ask what Peter meant, Alice and Irwin appeared at the foot of our bed out of nowhere, making me yelp in alarm and scramble back into Jasper's arms. I was expecting the usual laughter at my skittish human reaction, but the silence was deafening, deep and foreboding. Jasper's arms tightened around me.

"Alice?" He asked, "What have you and Peter seen?"

"Victoria," Alice whimpered, and I echoed the sound. "Something's changed. She, Tristan, and Annabeth are coming today, and it looks like they've made six newborns."

"To Forks?" I gasped. "You don't mean here, as in Volterra, do you?" Alice shook her head, horror and sadness evident on her elfin face. "Peter's going to be more help than I will. Right when they get close, everything blurs and goes blank."

I struggled to breathe properly. They were targeting La Push.

"How long, Alice?" Jasper nearly growled. It took me a moment to realize I was being carried in Jasper's arms and we were running. The rest of my vampire family came barreling out of their rooms and quickly fell in behind us.

"They disappear in about eight hours," Alice answered. "Peter and Charlotte disappear about ten minutes after that."

"Even if we charter a private jet, we couldn't fly there in time," Carlisle spoke up grimly. "Teleportation?" He asked, looking at amber-eyed Irwin, but both he and Alice shook their heads.

"They won't let us go," Alice sounded like she would be crying if she could.

"The hell they won't!" Both Jasper and Emmett snarled. Kate hissed angrily.

"I've seen it," Alice cried. "They won't let us break contract and leave early, none of us. I've already tried a dozen different scenarios, and every one I can see ends with them killing at least one, if not all of us if we leave."

"This is a life-or-death situation, Alice," Tanya interjected.

"For the wolves!" Alice snapped. "They've said nothing against our treaty with them, nor have they complained about their growing numbers, but they don't care about the wolves!"

"What about all the humans?!" I gasped, coming out of my momentary stupor. "The other Quileutes, the families, the imprints, Charlie! What about inconspicuous hunting and secrecy law? This isn't some mid-hunt slip. This is a planned massacre. Without my shield, everyone in both La Push and Forks will probably be slaughtered! Even Peter and Charlotte can't fight with their eyes closed!" I was full-growling. I was livid.

"Still, a deal is a deal," Caius said crisply. We had reached the conjoined master suites. Aro held open the door and let us in. At some point, various Guard members had turned to pursue our horde. They followed us in, growling in warning to calm ourselves before their masters. Caius was seated at the large table, a small, infuriating smile on his face. Marcus was seated next to him, looking for the most part as detached as usual, but it seemed to me like the ever-present shadows of sadness in his eyes were a little darker. Aro wore his usual well-crafted mask of sympathy mixed with heavy authority. Edward stood next to him, his expression unreadable.

"I do pity your situation, cara mia, but my brother is correct," Aro said, adding an apologetic head-tilt for effect. "You and your coven, your entire coven," he emphasized, glancing briefly at every gold-eyed vampire in the room, "are contract bound to the premises for the full weekend, no matter the extenuating circumstances. We've been very understanding and we have made many concessions for you. Too many," he added darkly, his expression hardening. "Our casual handling of this situation with you has apparently misled a number of our Guard to believe slips in discipline and respect are tolerable. We will not make any more allowances for you, Isabella. Not even in this case. Our word is law, and those who break our laws are punished as we see fit."

My anger had crumpled and I was crying, my hybrid tears clinging to my skin and falling slowly. "Please," I begged. "We saw them coming on a weekday, weeks from now. They need me. Without my shield, everyone will die. The wolves, humans, and now two vampires are running to help despite never having met me, or any of them. Just this one exception, I'm begging you, Masters, please…" I trailed off hopelessly, knowing the answer to my pleas already. My heart was breaking. Diluted venom was burning my eyes and dripping from my chin. When Edward walked over and wiped a tear away, looking torn, my anger snapped back with a vengeance.

"You!" I snarled, my hand whipping out to slap him in the face before anyone could think to stop me. The action hurt me more than it hurt him, but venom had made me a little stronger, so I was rewarded with a slight flinch. "This is all your fault! If you hadn't sold me out, if you hadn't stubbornly refused my rejection and insisted we're mates, if you hadn't kept the truth about me hidden from our family, none of this would be happening!" I was on my feet, my face inches from Edward's. He flinched again when I laughed darkly and smiled a little manically, even as a couple more viscid tears escaped my eyes. "All those innocent people are going to die, and their blood is going to be on your hands as much as Victoria's. You can no longer claim you've never killed innocents. Go look in a mirror, Edward. See the monster you always feared you'd become." With that, I stalked out of the room. The Guard made no move to stop me. My vampire family, not knowing what else to do, followed me out.

Jasper took my hand and tried to soothe me as we walked, but his eyes were pitch black with his own fury. The Major in him was bubbling to the surface. He was on the verge of snapping as well. "Call the wolves," I said, giving him something productive to do. "Or call Peter and Char and tell them to stay away, I won't begrudge you the choice. Save your friends, if you can, but thank them for the offer."

That was the wrong thing to say. The tenuous hold Jasper had on the Major in him snapped, and the whites of his eyes went almost as dark as his hard black irises. He roared, picked me up, and took off running again. Our family fell back. One of them would make the necessary calls, probably Alice or Carlisle. I was surprised to see Jane waiting by the door to our room, but after one look at Jasper's face she bolted. From the brief glimpse I got of her face, I guessed she'd come to try consoling me somehow, but it seemed everyone recognized the change in Jasper for what it was and knew to stay the hell out of the way if they liked their heads attached.

"Bella!" Everyone except that idiot.

Jasper tossed me onto our bed none-too-gently and moved to slam our door shut, but Edward slipped inside just before it hit hard enough to rattle the ancient iron hinges. The Major snarled viciously at Edward, but Edward seemed more concerned about me. He shot me a pained, worried glance, and he made the huge mistake of taking a step toward me. In a movement too fast for even my improved vision to catch, Jasper had him pinned against the far wall, snarling and snapping his teeth inches from Edward's neck. Edward didn't look frightened at all. He gave me another agonized look before glaring furiously at Jasper.

"I knew it," he whispered in defeated defiance. "I knew you'd do this again. I knew you were controlling her! She denied me because she fears you!" He growled softly. Jasper growled back and slammed him into the wall again. "This monster in you that you kept contained until she was at her most vulnerable," Edward groaned in pain. "I came back to Forks in December too. I saw you go into her room, and I heard her scream, and even outside I felt the power you used against her. You knocked her out with it and ran. I went inside to check on her and I saw the bruises you'd left on her arms. Our world is too dangerous for a human, even a Saturno, and I was looking at further proof of that reasoning." Edward's gaze softened and he relaxed in Jasper's grip before turning back to me.

"I love you enough to hate myself for how I left you," he said with heart-wrenching, vulnerable sincerity. I was confused. "I came back to apologize for that, to give you proper closure. You were so out of it after what Jasper had done, I had to wait for another chance to tell you. So I waited. I waited and watched, but he kept following you. He killed those innocent men in front of you." Whoa, there. Innocent men? Didn't he recognize them? "He emotionally tortured you again," Edward continued on. "I felt it. I heard you scream again. I wanted to save you, but I couldn't fight the Major alone, so I came to the Volturi. I assume Alice was watching Jasper, so she didn't see that first time I came to them. They told me to go back and convince you to come away with me, to start over with me where you'd be safe. They didn't want to cause a spectacle by sending the Guard unnecessarily." Some pieces were starting to click together, but some just didn't fit…

"Jasper would've smelled you, especially in my room," I challenged softly. I noticed Jasper had stopped growling. He still held Edward and his eyes were still Major-black, but his expression had also turned calculating.

"I stole some recently worn clothing from another house," Edward said, "to make myself smell more human. Small traces of my scent were still lingering around your house from September, so he wouldn't have noticed my scent was fresh."

"I wasn't bruised, and he wasn't torturing me, he was helping me," I argued. "He accidentally overdid it a little. And those men weren't innocent! They were the same ones you wanted to kill when they cornered me in that alley in Port Angeles! They were trying to rape me again! Jasper saved me!"

Edward blinked, looking confused. He shook his head and the confusion faded, replaced by stubborn conviction. "No. I may have misinterpreted the fight in the movie theatre, but I know he's been manipulating you. He knew about Saturnos long before I did. I first heard of them in his mind, in his memories, before I researched the topic more, before I even met you. He probably knew what you were before I did!"

"I never thought about Saturnos until Eleazar mentioned them, not since the wars," the Major countered. "It's such an insignificant detail in my story, I never told anyone until recently. I never thought about it around you. There's no way you got that out of my head, boy." Jasper was growling again, and his grip on Edward had tightened again.

"Wait, Major," I said, climbing off the bed and walking over. He growled in warning and I heard Edward's granite skin start to crack. "That's just it. We've got different pieces from two different puzzles. Some pieces make perfect sense, but some are completely wrong, but he really seems to believe what he's saying. He's not fighting you, Major. Like he said, he knows he can't. He seriously came here thinking he had to save me from you."

"You're not the telepath," Jasper growled softly, but I could tell my reasoning was sinking in.

"No, but when's the last time my intuition was wrong?" I challenged gently. The Major's grip on Edward slackened again. "Edward," I said, moving close enough to touch his shoulder, discreetly testing my powers on him, particularly my shield. Was someone's power making him delusional? Was this how Chelsea's bonding power worked? "If you came to the Volturi because you were afraid of Jasper hurting me, why are they letting us stay together? Why haven't they forced him to leave me alone?"

"Marcus can see he's forced a mating bond with you. Empaths can to that."

"Nothing but my presence here was forced on me," I interrupted Edward. "Jasper is my mate. I think my shield messes with Marcus' gift, too," I explained. "It's the bond he sees between you and me that's false. Okay, we both truly, deeply loved each other, but we're not true mates."

Edward's anger abruptly returned. The Major had begun to relax beside me, so Edward was able to land a hard hit that sent him flying through the air. Jasper's arm hit me squarely in the mouth as he went flying, hard enough to draw blood, but luckily not hard enough to break my teeth or jaw. Despite the blood and the Major's feral roar of fury, Edward grabbed me and kissed me, licking the blood away gently and sealing the wound in the process. Jasper ripped me away from Edward, but the rest of the family decided to intervene before he could rip Edward's head off. Edward slumped to the floor, looking dazed, somewhat reminding me of when Irwin first saw Alice, but then his expression morphed into one of pure horror, and he fled while the rest of the family restrained Jasper. Everyone but Alice, that is. She'd slipped into a vision. I automatically looked around for her mate, but Irwin wasn't in the room.

"NO!" Alice suddenly screamed, and she ran from the room. I stood frozen on the spot for a moment, torn between the instinct to go to my mate and the urge to follow her. I was distracted by the sound of a cowbell. Peter. I went to grab Jasper's phone as Alice sped back into the room, looking terrified.

"My mate's future is gone!" She wailed, "He and Edward both just completely disappeared!"

My hands were shaking as I read Peter's text. I held the phone out so everyone could read the brief message. There were only six words:

Edward is going to fight Tristan.


	21. Edward's Endgame

♂︎(Jasper's POV)

The emotions in the room were overwhelming, but I fought to push them back and rein in my inner Major. If he had his way the next Guard member to come into the same hallway as our room was liable to lose a limb, even if they genuinely meant well, like Jane had minutes ago. No, I needed to employ calm and careful thought to solve our current problem. Dismembering first and asking questions later would get us nowhere.

"How's he gonna to that?" Emmett was the first to shake off his shock and speak. Bella had yet to move an inch. She was still staring at my phone in her hand, as if she could will Peter's text to change.

"With his eyes closed," I answered, releasing the last bit of tension in my stance and walking over to my mate. I gently pried the phone from her hands and sat down on the bed, pulling her down onto my lap and wrapping her in my arms, placing the phone on the bed beside us. Bella instinctively relaxed in my embrace and drew a few calming breaths, but she didn't move much, her shock and confusion only infinitesimally shaken by my touch. I stroked her mussed mahogany hair soothingly and turned back to Emmett. "And I don't say that boastingly. I mean that literally. The only way to fight Tristan without Bella's shield is to surprise him from behind or fight with your eyes closed. Edward's tried it with us before, remember? His telepathy makes it possible, though certainly not easy."

"He could easily be distracted or overwhelmed by all the other thoughts around him," Carlisle worried aloud. Despite everything Edward had done, Carlisle and Esme still cared deeply for him, and they were as concerned for him as any unconditionally loving parent would be for a misguided, troubled child. I had to admit, I was concerned for him too, and not just because of how his potential death could hurt my family. Moments ago, I'd been poised and prepared to kill him myself, but Bella was right. Something was off there. We were missing an important piece to a big puzzle. Having regained my composure, I knew in my heart that killing him would have been a mistake I would have regretted forever.

"He's still all we've got," Bella finally shifted in my lap and spoke. "Without my shield, and with all of us stuck here, Tristan's unbeatable unless Edward can kill him."

"Or at least keep him busy enough for someone else to do it," Kate chimed in.

"Peter and Char can easily handle the six newborns," I offered. "If the wolves can handle Victoria and Annabeth by themselves, I'm sure they'll help Edward. It just might work, and it will keep us out of trouble with the Volturi."

"Speaking of which, what about Irwin?" Eleazar asked, automatically looking to Alice, even though she was blinded by her new mate's proximity to the wolves. The anxiety and anguish radiating from my ex-wife would have been crippling if Bella weren't amplifying my gift, consciously or not. I was able to keep Alice's emotions at bay and keep the rest of the room relatively calm. I felt a strange tugging sensation through my gift, and then Irwin appeared at the foot of the bed before anyone could even attempt to answer Eleazar's question.

"I'm sorry I couldn't stay and fight," he spoke even as Alice flung herself across the room at him, locking him in her tiny arms. "I wanted to," he continued, reflexively hugging Alice back, "but the scarred male I assumed to be your comrade, Peter, insisted I leave Edward and return here for now. He arrived seconds after we did, and I could hear other footsteps fast approaching. I wanted to stay, especially since Edward seemed to have lost his mind, but Peter told me it was imperative that I return immediately and report back to Aro."

"Wait, what do you mean by 'he seemed to have lost his mind'?" Bella asked anxiously. "I mean, I agree. I still don't understand what was wrong with him before he left…" Bella trailed off, momentarily lost in thought. Irwin understood her nonetheless.

"After Aro dismissed us, I headed this way, but I ran into Jane," he explained. "She warned me I might want to stay away, and then we both heard you growling and shouting. Jane seemed uncharacteristically distraught, so when she asked me to teleport her to Alec, I couldn't refuse. It only took me a minute or so to find him, and I teleported back immediately. Just as I reached the door, Edward came barreling out, grabbing my arm and dragging me along with him, saying there was only one way to save Bella's friends and redeem himself, and he needed my help to do it." Irwin paused and frowned. "Well, he said a version of that," he corrected himself. "He was actually babbling rather frantically and incoherently, but I wanted to help you all as well, so I just went along with it. He dragged me out into Didyme's garden, out of earshot of everyone else I suppose, and he kept rattling on about needing to redeem himself and what a monster he'd become. 'I don't understand,' he kept saying. Over and over, 'I don't understand. What have I done? I don't understand…' It was frightening, really."

"After our fight, that makes a little sense," I surmised, "but what happened next?"

"He described a clearing just outside Forks and La Push, a circular meadow full of wildflower buds and surrounded by blossoming trees, and he told me to teleport him there. When we arrived, he collapsed to his knees and said, 'Of course it ends here in our meadow. Fate has been so cruel, and I am truly the April fool.' Then he went back to rambling incoherently about Saturnos, memories and delusions, manically laughing at one point about finally remembering what it's like to dream. When Peter arrived, he seemed to get control of himself. After Peter told me to leave, just before I teleported, Edward grabbed my arm and told me to give a message to Bella."

"What message?" Bella asked softly, her eyes brimming with hybrid tears again, her emotions chaotic and painful. Irwin looked her dead in the eye.

"Tell her I never knew what she was, that I love her, and that I wish her and Jasper well." Bella gasped and shimmering tears spilled down her face. "Peter insisted I leave then, so he could say no more…" Irwin trailed off uncomfortably. "He said I have to go straight to Aro with this, Bella. I don't know why, but I have to. I'm sorry…" Irwin tried to put Alice back on her feet, but she clung to him tightly.

"Let's go, then," she grumbled into his shoulder. Irwin shook his head and pried her arms open, setting her down gently and gripping her delicate shoulders in his broad hands.

"No," he spoke gently but vehemently. Wariness, protectiveness, confusion, and conviction were warring within him, but protectiveness and conviction were winning out. "Peter didn't say anything about you, but I don't want you in the room with me when I confront Aro with this. I don't think we broke any rules, so everything should be fine, but I have a bad feeling about all of this that I just can't shake, so please, mon petit fleur, wait here for me." Alice frowned in response, but then she nodded once and gave him a quick peck on the lips before he teleported away.

"French, huh?" Rose quipped, "At least you won't have to beg this one to go to Paris with you on your every whim." Alice stuck her tongue out at Rose.

"Literally," Bella half-laughed, clearly still hurt and lost in thought. "On a whim," she clarified. "French and a teleporter, Alice's dream come true." Alice turned her mock glare on Bella, but despite her joke, Bella was still too preoccupied to actually engage in the play fight.

"How much of the fight did the rest of you actually hear?" Bella asked the room, changing the subject.

"All of it," Esme responded. "We did consider leaving and giving you more privacy to work out your personal matters, but then we heard it escalate so quickly…" Bella nodded understandingly.

"Just as well," Bella said, and I felt a hint of genuine relief ripple through her. "That would have been difficult to explain. It's still confusing, trying to sort it out in my own head… Edward actually seemed to believe he saw Jasper hurt me, and he really didn't recognize those men. With vampire senses and nearly infallible memory, how is that possible?"

"I've never heard of such a thing," Carlisle answered. Everyone else shook their heads, but then Eleazar abruptly stopped, staring off into space instead, sorting through his own memories.

"I might have," he finally said. Confusion. Denial. Frustration. Sadness. Anger. Self-loathing.

"And that realization is making you loathe with yourself?" I asked, thoroughly perplexed and fighting down my own frustration and anger again.

"I may have this all wrong, but if this epiphany is well-founded, my involvement in all that followed… no, that just couldn't be true. I mustn't give such weight to idle gossip. It's certainly interesting that Edward went to Didyme's garden, of all places…" Eleazar mused aloud, either not recognizing my query as being directed at him or momentarily ignoring it. I fought back another surge of anger and frustration. The Major was on the brink of bursting forth again. My mate seemed to instinctively sense the change, because she snuggled closer to me and kissed me lightly on the neck, trying to calm her own emotions as much as possible so I could draw soothing energy from her.

"What do you mean, Eleazar?" Bella asked him directly, raising her voice enough to make sure she was heard. Eleazar blinked, coming out of his stupor of memoriam and smiling fondly at her.

"Back in the 1700's, cara mia," he began. Unlike she did with Aro, Bella did not flinch at his endearment for her. "You remember my story about the battle with the Romanian coven, and Didyme's death shortly thereafter?" Bella nodded.

"Marcus' mate was killed by true werewolves," she said.

"That's what we were all told, at least," Eleazar amended. "Now that I think about it, something strange occurred around that time as well. The two vampires hunting with her when they were attacked were executed. That they survived and only she died spoke of either carelessness or treachery, neither of which are acceptable from such high-ranking Guards. No one else witnessed Didyme's death, unless you count Aro witnessing it through the minds of her Guards. He's told me on more than one occasion that he wishes he could erase that horrific image from his mind, but I digress. I vaguely remember various vampires among the Guard questioning whether Children of the Moon were involved at all. Some suspected Didyme had been murdered, and that her Guards and the werewolves had been framed… In the end, the rumors died, the tragic truth was accepted, and everyone but Marcus gradually moved on. After Aro, Caius, and Marcus destroyed most of the werewolves, the day Marcus was subdued and bound by Chelsea, I overheard two guards saying they heard Aro and Marcus fighting."

"What about?" Irina asked.

"I don't remember," Eleazar answered promptly. Everyone stared at him in disbelief. "I don't remember everything they said," Eleazar rephrased. “I was on the edge of earshot for most of the conversation, so I only caught bits and pieces of it. I do remember Sulpicia's name came up, so I went to Aro and asked him about it. After reading what I'd overheard, that's when he told me how Marcus nearly harmed Sulpicia in his rage. Aro declared that was the final straw that made them bind him." Everyone nodded, saddened but understanding. Something about Eleazar's story didn't sit right with me, however, and I felt a stirring of suspicion in Bella too.

"Which Guards overheard the fight?" I asked as casually as I could manage. I felt a wave of encouragement from Bella. She agreed with my line of questioning and saw where I was going with it.

"William and Catherine," Eleazar answered.

"Those names don't sound familiar," I said, "and Bella and I have been dragged around to meet everyone here by now."

"Including every human temporarily working here," Bella added, cringing. "Far too many names for me to remember yet, but those two don't ring a bell for me either. What happened to them?" Eleazar shrugged.

"I met Carmen about three years later and left," he replied. "They were still part of the Guard then. They must have died or quit sometime after I left." I stared at Eleazar expectantly, and I noticed everyone else doing the same thing. Eleazar was sharper than this, yet I felt no surge of suspicion from him. If anything, his other feelings of sadness, anger, and self-loathing were fading. Confusion and frustration remained strong, but he seemed oblivious to the fact that he'd just given us all another clue, another curiosity. Something strange and potentially dangerous was going on here, and one of the oldest and wisest vampires in the room was slow to catch on to what good and loyal Irwin was already beginning to sense.

"It's Chelsea," Bella blurted, wriggling out of my embrace and pacing the room. "It has to be Chelsea," she continued, "and maybe someone else…" Bella paced silently for a moment before rounding on Carlisle and Eleazar. "Do either of you know when Chelsea was inducted into the Guard?"

"I'm not exactly sure, Bella, but I believe it was sometime in the 1400's," Carlisle answered.

"In the 1460's, I believe," Eleazar affirmed, "though I am also uncertain. I joined in the 1520's."

Bella resumed her pacing, obviously deep in thought and struggling with her emotions: frustration, sadness, anger, suspicion, and growing, blooming hatred. Such a foreign emotion to the beautiful creature before me, that hatred in and of itself was enough to cause her restlessness. Better to let her grow accustomed to that emotion than to smother it, so I left her to it. In times of war, hatred was ever-present. As much as a part of me hated witnessing the slow dimming of her innocence, it would be good for Bella in the long run to shed some of that youthful naïveté.

"It's a chess match," I thought aloud. "One with three kings on one side, and Chelsea the queen in terms of power, some other key players, and a lot of brainwashed sacrifice pawns."

"No," Bella surprisingly countered. "It's puppetry. The chess board is a stage, the apparent three kings aren't all what they seem, though toppling them still may be the key to victory, and the queen…" After a small pause, Bella huffed in frustration and lightly kicked the bedpost. "Never mind, I can't eloquently combine my theory with yours. This just sounds to me more like the newborn vampire wars you described, fought with strong but ignorant warriors, not like human wars with clearly explained causes and knowledgeable soldiers. Chelsea and one or more of the so-called 'kings' are the puppeteers pulling all the strings, and all the others here are their puppets. Chelsea or someone else here has the power to alter memories, and when that power fails, the strings are cut and someone conveniently disappears, commits a crime punishable by execution, or gets attacked and killed."

"No one here has such a gift, Bella," Eleazar argued gently. "I would know."

"That's true, Bella," Carlisle agreed. Bella glared at him. "Sweetheart, Eleazar served here for around two-hundred years, and he's met everyone else here. Only your shield blocks his gift. If anyone could tamper with memories, Eleazar would know it."

"What if it's not merely my shield that blocks him?" Bella nearly shouted, nerves frayed. I shot a wave of calm and wariness her way and she quieted. "What if his gift works like Edward's?" Bella turned back to Eleazar. "What if your gift is limited, letting you see only one gift even when others are present? My dominant gift is a shield, so I block you out entirely, but what if you can't identify Saturnos?"

Before Eleazar could reply, a cowbell chimed. Another text from Peter. I read it aloud to the room: "Fight's over. Victoria, Tristan, and newborns eliminated. Annabeth fled early on. No casualties. Cleaning up the mess now, full report later."

"That was fast," Emmett commented, looking for the clock. "Twenty minutes." I shrugged.

"Average for a skirmish like that really," I corrected. "Newborns are easily disposed of with proper training, so six newborns would be no problem for Peter and Char, especially with all the wolves there to distract them. The flyer apparently deserted, and Victoria was too overconfident to realize she was done for before it was too late. Tristan was the only one we were really worried about, and Edward's last minute plan seems to have worked."

"He didn't say that," Bella and Alice both spoke at the same time.

"He didn't say that," Bella repeated worriedly. "He said there were no casualties, but nothing was said about injuries or petrification. Even if that was a little skirmish by your standards, we don't have a full report yet. Someone might've been hurt."

"Bella," Eleazar reclaimed her attention, pulling her from the morbid thoughts surely filling her mind. Her rapidly mounting anxiety stuttered to a halt. "Though you are one exception, I can read your kind just fine. Saturnos may be near extinction now, but I told you I've met two others before. You're just the first human Saturno I've met, and the first mental shield. In the 1600's, the day I and a number of the Guard, Demetri among them, went to save Jane and Alec from execution for witchcraft, we crossed paths with two Saturnos fleeing the area, one of them older and one mid-change. The newborn was never found, but his sire was the first Saturno to be tracked down and executed. That Saturno, Piers, was a telekinetic empath. Now, I mentioned Demetri because you are not the first Saturno to thwart his tracking gift. We never got the newborn's name, but he was telekinetic and a morphman. The latter was the gift that hid him from Demetri. That morphman Saturno could change his appearance and scent at will, though not like your shape-shifters. He could not take the shape of another specie. We don't fully understand why Demetri couldn't track him, since the morphman altered his bodily form, not his mind, but we suspect his inconstant physicality prevented his mind from giving off a consistent signature Demetri could follow. I would know if there was a Saturno among the Volturi, Bella."

"Unless you did discover one and they altered your memory of it," Bella muttered stubbornly. Before the argument could continue, my phone started playing 'Ladies Love Country Boys' by Trace Adkins, Peter's ringtone. I grabbed the phone and pressed the speaker button.

"You're on speaker, Captain. Report."

"Major," Peter's familiar southern drawl was much more pronounced than mine. He hadn't spent a century suppressing his natural accent as I had. "The newborns were as green as they come and easily disposed of. Some pups without proper trainin' did sustain minor injuries, but they healed quickly on their own. That flyer, Annabeth, you're not gonna have to worry about. Like I said, she left the battle, but not before ripping Vicky's head off and takin' it with her. Seems she only came along because Vicky told her the pups killed her mate. When the enemy troop initially arrived, Vicky saw Eddie and shouted, 'That's him! That's the human bitch's mate! He killed James!' Well, of course Tristan started taunting Eddie 'bout that one, but Eddie called him a fool for helping Victoria hunt a human Saturno under the protection of the Volturi. I guess Vicky didn't mention that detail to him, because he faltered a little, and Eddie almost had him, but that's when Annie distracted him."

The room was frozen. Everyone was hanging on Peter's every word. I gave Bella a gentle shake to remind her to breathe. She still needed to, unlike the rest of us. "Go on," I ordered Peter.

"After hearing what Eddie said, Annie suddenly flew up out of range and called out, 'Has anyone seen a male vampire, just under six feet tall, with short auburn hair?' I guess Eddie read Vicky's mind, because he answered, 'Never! Victoria lied to you! She killed Seamus herself!' Annie screamed and swooped down on Vicky, tearin' her head off and flyin' off with it. The commotion distracted Eddie enough for Tristan to land some hard hits, so Char ran over to help. You know what happens when you cut off one sense though; your other senses and instincts go into overdrive. Char was just grabbin' Eddie to pull him out of the way of Tristan's kill-strike, but Eddie reacted reflexively and tossed her. He ended up throwin' her into Tristan, so I ran to help her. Eddie must have been overwhelmed by the chaos, because he opened his eyes and ended up lookin' right at Tristan. He was instantly petrified, but in that moment that Tristan was distracted, Char and I ripped him apart."

"S-so he was only petrified?" Bella stammered, struggling to breathe normally. I held her close and sent her gentle waves of ease. "Edward's still alive?"

"Yeah, sweet pea, it looks like he'll be okay," Peter reassured her. "He's still completely paralyzed, but he's breathin', and you know we don't need to do that, so he's just provin' a point."

"From what my visions from weeks ago told me, the petrification should wear off in about an hour," Alice supplied. "An hour from the moment of Tristan's death, that is." I felt Bella's anxiety plummet, and she visibly relaxed in my arms. "I guess I'll go tell Aro. He'll want to send Irwin back for Edward." Alice almost made it out of the room when Peter called out to her.

"Pixie, hold up a minute." Alice paused in the doorway.

"There's a reason I told your mate to go straight back to Aro, and it ain't good. You know my gift has its own hang-ups like yours, and I see you and Irwin gettin' through whatever happens next alright, but I saw an image of you two standin' by a pillar of purple smoke, and we all know what that means." Alice gasped and her eyes widened, then her eyes glazed over as she searched the future for the rest of whatever scene Peter only saw a snapshot of. Suddenly, Alice let out a horrified scream and bolted from the room. We all started to follow, our phone conversation forgotten, when Peter spoke again.

"Irwin! How did… Whoa, man, what the hell! Irwin!"

"Captain!" I growled, the Major instantly responding to Peter's tone and resurfacing, "Speak clearly! What happened?"

"Irwin just reappeared and took Edward, Major," Peter responded promptly and urgently. "Going off the scream I heard on your end, I think I know who's gonna be a pile of ashes in a minute." I hung up the phone, picked up Bella, and ran after Alice. Everyone else followed behind me, their emotions pushing me faster. Horror. Terror. Shock. Sadness. Denial. Outrage. The tumult of terrible emotions chased me like a deadly avalanche. I clutched Bella tightly and ran as hard as I could after Alice's scent. The trail ended in the throne room.

Both Irwin and Alice were being restrained by the anesthetizing fog that was Alec's gift. Jane was standing in a far corner near her brother, her expression ambivalent and her emotions warring. Edward stood before Aro, Caius, and Marcus, physically restrained on either side by Felix and Demetri even though he was still paralyzed from Tristan's attack. Renata stood right behind Aro, her fingertips touching his shoulder, and Chelsea stood beside Marcus. Various lower Guards ran over to form a wall barring me and my family from the scene before us, and a terrible scene it was.

"It's such a shame," Aro spoke clearly, obviously aware of his audience, shaking his head in feigned contrition. "Such a waste," he continued. He looked directly at Bella and I felt her shiver in my arms. I fought back the threatening growl that erupted from my chest, but a low rumble of warning emerged despite my efforts. Aro completely ignored me. "Don't fret, cara mia, I know none of you were made aware of dear Edward's defection until it was too late to stop him, and Irwin will not be too harshly punished for his involvement. I saw in his mind that he was truly unaware of Edward's inclusion in the contract binding you all here." What? Edward's inclusion? Since when? Before anyone could utter a word of protest, Aro plowed on, "I'm truly sorry, but the Volturi do not forgive such treason. That said, we will show mercy this one time and end him while he is still mostly unaware." Aro waved his hand, and that was it. Felix and Demetri ripped Edward into pieces and set him alight in a matter of seconds.

Shock. Confusion. Anger. Agony. Fear. Desperation. Devastation. I felt everyone's pain as we all stood helplessly, watching Edward burn.


	22. Inevitable

♀︎(Bella's POV)

The plane ride home from Volterra was unbearable. I could only imagine how terrible it was for Jasper. Though he'd hunted right before boarding, his irises were already black from the vampire version of fatigue. This was one of those moments when I pitied him for his empathic abilities. I tried to keep my own pain and anger under control, but I wondered if any of the others were doing the same. Jasper wasn't their mate, he was mine. Alice was his ex-wife though, so she probably kept a hold on her emotions out of habit, and Carlisle and Esme were so used to accommodating their children, I would imagine they kept their empathic son's well-being in mind even as they grieved the loss of their telepathic son, their Edward. Their Edward… at one point he'd been my Edward. I decided he still was, but not in the romantic sense. I felt like everyone else on the plane did, like I'd lost a family member. In our own ways, we all did grieve. We'd misjudged Edward. We'd had it wrong all along. Edward was never the bad guy, but another puppet. He was a victim, and the circumstances of his death just made everything worse. We were confused, we were blind-sided, we were angry, we were devastated and guilt-ridden, and Jasper felt it all.

"Jasper?" I whispered, nudging him lightly. "Let me help. How can I help? I've tried shielding, but my shield doesn't block your gift."

"It's a buffer," Jasper murmured distractedly, not looking at me. "I can feel a slight difference when you try; it softens the blow of incoming emotions, but I still feel them, and you can't shield me from my own emotions."

"It might help if you let some of it back out. Stop straining yourself. You've already burned off all the blood from your last hunt."

"No, Bella," Jasper said firmly, but I wouldn't back down. I could almost hear his teeth grinding under the strain.

"Then we'll try my amplification," I pressed. "Maybe if I amplify your power enough, you'll be able to keep all this pain at bay for a little while and rest."

"The amount of amplification that would take would knock you out," Jasper growled softly. "Then you wouldn't be able to help at all, and we'd all worry about your condition on top of everything else. That would only make things worse, Isabella."

Isabella? It wasn't spoken condescendingly, but in a detached, formal tone. The whites of his eyes were darkening. The Major was resurfacing, but I did not fear the darker side of my mate. The fact that Jasper's version of a shield was emerging only made me more concerned for him. That said, I could actually use the presence of his less emotional, more tactful side to my advantage if I could just get him to listen to my new idea… well, I could tell him part of it, but I'd have to spring the rest on him.

"Carlisle, didn't we bring some emergency blood bags with us?" I asked without looking away from Jasper. I leaned forward so I could look him in the eye and plowed on without waiting for Carlisle's response; I knew the answer was yes. "Major, will you at least drink some blood for me? It's killing me seeing my mate in pain. If you won't let me help you with the emotional pain, will you at least feed, so you aren't dealing with the burn as well? It will strengthen you again, especially being human blood. It's just a little; I know you won't relapse. Please let me care for you in this one way?" Jasper frowned for a moment, but then he nodded. Carlisle had already risen, but I scrambled to my feet to block the isle.

"No, Carlisle, I was just asking if we still had some," I said. "Really, please let me get it. I need to help him. The bags are in the mini-fridge in back, right? I'll warm up a cup." Carlisle nodded and sat back down. The deep sadness apparent on his angelic face was another stab at my still-beating heart. Every other vampire's expression mirrored his, and that gave me another idea. It was another bold move, but perhaps the best course of action was to shake things up a bit. A distraction, that's what we needed. "In fact, if I'm going to open a bag, maybe I'll try a couple sips myself." As I expected, surprise broke through the masks of sadness everyone wore, then Carlisle's brow furrowed in concern and a small smile began forming on Emmett's lips.

"We already know she can drink animal blood from the source, Carlisle," Jasper interceded on my behalf before Carlisle could argue. "And the smell doesn't sicken her anymore. It makes her thirsty, like any of us. It's just a small amount, and you can't tell me you aren't curious about what will happen." Thank you, alpha-male Major! "Her eyes have also darkened, if you'll take notice. I don't want her to suffer from thirst any more than she wants me to endure the burn unnecessarily." Carlisle reluctantly nodded and a small twinkle actually came back to Emmett's eyes. Rose rolled her eyes at her husband even as Eleazar scooted forward in his seat a little, his curiosity undeniable. As I walked toward the back of the sleek private jet, I saw Alice's eyes begin to glaze over and I lightly slapped her shoulder in passing, shaking my head infinitesimally when she turned to look at me. I didn't want the real surprise to be spoiled prematurely. I wasn't sure if Alice would stop me if she knew my plan, but some of the others might if she clued them in.

One piece of the puzzle kept popping into my head, and I was spinning that piece around and around, trying to make it fit. Whether or not the piece would fit, it finally occurred to me what the fragmented picture on its amorphous face depicted: a bleeding lip. My lip had been bleeding when Edward kissed me, right before he got that dazed look on his face, right before he fled the room looking horror-stricken. 'Tell her I never knew what she was, that I love her, and that I wish her and Jasper well.' That final message Edward conveyed to me through Irwin kept replaying in my head. Minutes before, he'd been growling accusations at Jasper and trying to take me away from him. After tasting my blood, he took it all back and wished us well. Were my gifts bloodborne? Did they work differently when ingested than when projected? I had to find out. All I needed was a blood bag, a knife, two towels, and two cups.

Not one of the eleven vampires seemed suspicious when I came out from behind the curtain that veiled the kitchenette. No one even raised an eyebrow when they saw me carrying the hot mugs with towel-wrapped hands, assuming as I hoped they would that the cups were too hot for me to carry barehanded. No one seemed aware of the fact that the slightly thicker of the two towels covered a small, fresh cut on my hand. The smell of the piping-hot bagged blood masked the scent of my own, so the few drops of my own blood I'd mixed into Jasper's cup went completely unnoticed until he actually began to drink. One, two, three good swallows before he paused. I stalled by turning to Emmett and raising my own cup. "Cheers!" I called, smiling and knocking back my smaller cup of blood like a shot. Hmm… not bad. The taste reminded me of hay or cornhusks somehow, with a touch of sweetness. Emmett whooped and applauded.

"Isabella." Yep, the Major was still out. I stuck my chin out stubbornly and turned to face him again. "What on earth possessed you to mix your own blood into this? Notes of honeysuckle and hay, with mild but distinct notes of freesia and lavender?" He somehow managed to sound darkly dangerous and lovingly scolding at the same time. Still, I knew I had no reason to fear any aspect of my true mate.

"Bella, please, Major," I said steadily. "You know I don't care for my full name." The Major blinked, surprised, but I continued on evenly and openly, "I did it to test a theory, and to help you. Yes, the latter being done despite your protests. What's done is done though, so if you'll please drink the rest of the blood, I'll continue with my explanation." The Major blinked again, clearly unaccustomed to being instructed to do anything by anyone other than Maria or the Volturi, but he didn't seem angered. Mates were exceptions. He quickly gulped down the remaining blood in his cup, and then he nodded for me to continue.

"You'd gone so feral when it happened," I began, "you might not have noticed, and everyone else was busy restraining you or searching the future, but something clearly happened to Edward after he kissed me, after he licked my blood from my lips. He looked dazed, like Irwin did when he met Alice and Chelsea's hold on him was broken. Edward left looking horrified, and according to Irwin he started calling himself a monster and made a desperate play for redemption. Try something for me now, Major. I'm not projecting now, and I won't try to do so. You try projecting different emotions to some of us, on your own."

"Anger," Tanya suddenly hissed.

"Happiness," Alice called from her seat beside Tanya. Jasper was following my instruction, and with every new emotion called out, the whites of his eyes lightened.

"Irritability," Eleazar added, shifting uneasily.

"Lethargy," Carmen murmured, dropping her head onto her mate's shoulder.

"Peace," Carlisle and Esme both sighed gratefully. "Peace," was then echoed by every vampire around me. The Major had withdrawn completely. The whites of Jasper's eyes had cleared and his irises were a light amber with only a faint hint of red. He looked so much more relaxed. I breathed a sigh of my own, genuine relief. The very air in the cabin felt so much lighter.

"My gifts are bloodborne," I declared confidently. Wherever this piece fit into the puzzle, it did fit, and it was crucial. "It is puppetry," I reiterated. "Someone was controlling Edward and messing with his mind, and Chelsea had bound him to the Volturi, if nothing else. Chelsea hasn't been able to touch our bonds through my shield, but when I projected my shield onto Edward, nothing happened. Whatever was done to him was planted so deeply within him that my shield couldn't touch it, but when he tasted my blood, taking my shield inside him, it all came undone. We all know what Aro told us about Edward being a member of both our covens was bullshit. He was killed because whatever was done to him was going to come out if he was left alive. That's why they didn't even wait for him to regain his senses or mobility…" I trailed off when a flicker of intuition made my stomach flip. I couldn't even put my finger on it, but some elusive thought in the back of my mind was making me nauseous. For the time being, I shook the feeling off. I dropped the towel covering my injured hand and offered it to Eleazar. "Prove me wrong," I challenged.

The small cut on my hand had clotted and sealed itself, but after shooting a respectful and reassuring glance at Jasper, Eleazar gently took my hand and licked away some of the dried blood staining my skin. He paused for a moment, frozen. He shook his head in denial, but he didn't release my hand or move away. His mouth hovered an inch from my skin. Another pause, then he slowly closed the gap, this time opening his mouth wider and gently grazing the sealed cut with his teeth, not biting or injecting venom, but scraping away the tacky seal of hardened blood. He sucked at the reopened wound gently. Jasper rapidly stood and flashed over to me, grabbing my shoulder, but I covered his hand with my free hand, telling him I was okay. After drawing four long pulls of blood, Eleazar sealed the cut with one more lick and released me. Jasper pulled me farther back, wrapping me in his arms. I leant into him and let him feel that I felt no pain or fear at all, but then Eleazar raised his head slowly, and I saw a painfully familiar look of horror on his face.

"William and Catherine…" Eleazar's pained whisper was almost inaudible to my ears. For such a formidable man, Eleazar looked very near the vampire equivalent of tears. "They were my friends, and I turned them in. I betrayed them to their deaths. They didn't quit…" Eleazar shook his head slowly. "They didn't quit. They were executed. When I went to Aro, I truly didn't expect them to be punished so harshly for gossip, but I came to their trial as a witness against them. I seem to remember having it in my head after the trial that they'd probably been double-agents working for the Romanians anyway, that they were trying to cause more trouble since their coven was destroyed… The day I left with Carmen, almost all my memories of them disappeared entirely. It's true. I don't remember how it happened or who did it to me, but someone altered my memory…" Eleazar visibly shuddered. No one else spoke. I think I was the only one breathing. We all just watched in silent shock and horror as the steadfast vampire before us came apart at the seams. He shuddered again. "So many things are coming back… It's true, what Edward told Irwin. I feel I do remember what it's like to dream now, but it's from unspeakable nightmares that I awake. Gods above forgive me! What have I done?"

"You can't think about it as what you've done," Jasper finally spoke, his voice dark and distant. "Do that and the guilt will eat away at you forever, until there's nothing left. I didn't create the Major deliberately, but when all the hatred, bloodshed, and guilt became too much for me to bear, he emerged. My subconscious created an alternate personality to protect me and help me cope. The alternate personality stayed with me beyond the wars, and in times of peace I learned to restrain or release him as needed, but you don't actually need an alternate personality to protect yourself in a similar manner. Think of the Volterran puppet you once were as a separate entity and place any blame for what you did back then on him, not on whom you are now. You are an entirely different man now. You are good, honest, steadfast, loyal to those you willingly honor with your loyalty, and loving. You would give your life to protect your beautiful mate, and she genuinely returns that fierce love and loyalty, expecting nothing in return. You are a crucial part of a large, humane, vegetarian coven. Name the puppet you once were what you like and curse their name for what they did, but do not insult my old friend Eleazar in such a way. You are a good man. You were a victim, and now you are free."

"And I'll never let them make a puppet of you again," I promised, viscid tears forging trails across my skin. I lunged forward and hugged Eleazar tightly. "With projection, blood, and venom if possible, I'll protect all of you from Edward's fate. Human or vampire, I'll keep you safe," I sobbed. "With everything I have in me, I'll keep you safe…" Still crying, I clambered back over to Jasper and hugged him with all my part-vampire strength. "I'll help the Major keep you safe. You have two shields now."

Jasper pulled back ever so slightly and gently lifted my chin so my eyes met his. "And one that I love with all my heart, mind, body, and soul." He kissed me soundly before pulling away once more. "It'll be next to impossible keeping this from Aro, but whatever happens, I'll protect you with everything I have in me."

"As will I," Eleazar pledged, reaching out and touching my shoulder.

"As will I," Carlisle vowed, touching my other shoulder.

"As will I," Esme and Carmen echoed at the same time, each touching the same shoulder as their respective mates.

"As will we," Emmett and Rose said together, both taking my right arm.

"As will we," Tanya, Irina, and Kate promised, lightly touching my back.

"As will we," Alice said, coming over and taking my left arm. I looked at her quizzically. "Yes, Irwin will feel the same way. I just need a blood sample to give him next time we see each other." Emmett snorted and I rolled my eyes. That's when we all heard a cowbell. Jasper pulled out his phone and read the text aloud.

"I don't know what just happened, but I saw y'all doing some kind of hands-in thing with Bella in the middle. Whatever it is, count me and Char in, too. Life's been a little dull over the last few decades. From what the pups and pet-sitters tell us, life's never dull with your girl around."

Emmett, naturally, was the first to crack. He snorted again and said, "That's an understatement." That got a laugh from Rose and Kate, then Jasper started chuckling, and soon we were all laughing. We laughed and laughed until the reality of what we were all saying really took hold again. We might be able to stall the inevitable for a while, but there was no way out, and there was no way it would end well. It would surely come to a fight, and people would surely die, but with that sense of inevitability came a strange sense of relief. It was the question of what the catalyst would be that put everyone on edge. We could hear the time-bomb ticking, but we couldn't see the clock. How much time did we have left before the explosion?

Our reception at Sea-Tac Airport was a surprise, to say the least. Two violet-eyed vampires I assumed to be Peter and Charlotte were leaning casually against the wall just outside the parking garage. Peter could easily pass for Jasper's older brother. He looked about twenty-eight, standing at approximately the same height as Jasper, though Peter had a slightly leaner build, and his blonde hair was straight and cut shorter. Charlotte looked like a living porcelain doll, taller than Alice but shorter than me, about five-foot-two I'd guess. She had a petite frame, with small curves only slightly more prominent than mine, and her blonde hair was almost as pale as her skin, cut in a shoulder-length bob with heavy bangs, the sharp angles of the cut balancing out a round face, very full lips, and large almond-shaped eyes with long lashes. She appeared to be about twenty-three years old. Charlie and Jacob stood next to the two new vampires.

"So, you went to Alaska this time, Bells?" Charlie asked. "Isn't it still pretty chilly up there in spring? Where were you camped?"

"Not so much camped as housed," Carlisle laughed easily. "It's actually been even colder than usual for this time of year. Our favorite campsite was closed due to the weather, so we dropped in on some relatives of ours. Charlie Swan, meet Eleazar, his wife Carmen, and their daughters Tanya, Irina, and Kate. Eleazar is Esme's cousin. It's so rare that we all get to see each other, so we decided to extend our visiting time by bringing them back with us. I see you've met Peter and Charlotte…" Carlisle tactfully trailed off for a moment, giving Charlie a chance to fill in the blanks so cover stories weren't crossed.

"Jasper and Rosalie's cousins, yeah," Charlie supplied. "Erm, well, their cousin Peter, and his wife Charlotte," he amended awkwardly. "They called me from your house yesterday, said they decided do drop in on their cousins and found the place empty. They found our number and called to ask about you. Didn't want them to have to wait for you alone, so I invited them to crash at my place last night."

"Yeah, we had one big sleep over," Jacob added, rolling his eyes. "I guess we all missed the memo that April Fool's Day was Surprise Guest Day this year. My sister, Rebecca, showed up out of the blue too, and you know what a sardine can our place is. I gave Becks my room and asked Charlie if I could borrow yours. The Chief's apparently moonlighting as an innkeeper now."

While Carlisle apologized for his rudeness and put on an act of introducing Jacob to the Denalis, I read between the lines of the conversation so far. My guess was, after the fight, Jacob bolted to my house to keep an eye on Charlie in case another vampire showed up. Just because Annabeth disengaged from the fight, that didn't mean she wouldn't go looking for lunch. Once Edward was taken away by Irwin, Peter and Charlotte probably ran up to the Cullen house to establish their reason for being in such an insignificant little town, so they could move about openly. I wondered whether they meant to draw an invitation out of Charlie or not, but it was added protection, so I had no problem with the outcome. I just hoped Jake and the human-drinkers were able to play nice well enough in front of Charlie to avoid raising suspicion. He was a cop after all, and related to me. He seemed relaxed and happy, so that was a good sign. I jumped slightly when Peter leaned into my line of vision. He and Charlotte had edged closer to me while I'd been observing my father. When I looked up to meet Peter's gaze, he stood just a few feet from me, and my improved vision allowed me to clearly see his red irises hidden beneath slowly eroding blue contacts. Peter flashed a wide grin at me and winked.

"So this is the little lady the whole town's talkin' about," he said, and I instantly recognized the heavy southern accent I'd heard over the phone in Volterra. Charlotte smiled and elbowed him playfully.

"Don't worry, sugar, we don't believe a word of it," she laughed, her accent also heavy and her tone a warm contralto, a perfect complement to her mate's deep bass. "You don't know small town gossip until you've lived in a southern small town. That, and we know our cousin has impeccable taste in women and would accept only the best."

"Char's been chompin' at the bit to meet ya, sweet pea," Peter commented, holding out his hand as he did so. I shook his hand without hesitation and was rewarded with another wide grin. "I'm pleased to meet ya too, miss Bella. I'm Peter Whitlock."

"And I'm Charlotte Whitlock," Charlotte said, skipping the handshake and going in for a hug, "but you can call me Char. Between what Jasper and your friend Jacob's told us about you, we feel like we've known ya forever." When she said 'forever', she gave me a comforting squeeze. When she released me and stepped back, I was struggling not to cry. It was enough of a struggle that Charlie took notice.

"You okay, kiddo?" He asked, patting me on the shoulder.

"Yeah, just jetlag," I lied, shrugging and adding a big yawn for effect. "I'm tired, that's all."

Jacob, apparently unable to control himself any longer, strode forward and pulled me into a tight hug. "By the way, we missed you, Bella," he said, the emotion seeping into his voice not quite fitting the casually phrased comment. He'd been afraid for me. I'd feared for his life too. I hugged him back fiercely.

"Missed you too, Jake," I said, my voice wavering a little. Carlisle cleared his throat.

"It sounds like we're all ready to get home and get comfortable," he said. "I'm sure we'll find plenty of time to do more catching up." Everyone nodded in agreement. Peter turned and shook Charlie's hand.

"Thanks for your hospitality, Chief Swan, but we'll go on back with our family now. You and Jake take miss Bella home and see she gets some good rest. We'll see y'all again soon." Peter turned back to me and nodded once as he said that last part, and Jasper gave me a firm hug and a light kiss on my forehead. I would see them again when Charlie fell asleep. Jake would stay with me in the meantime.

For show, I turned and briefly hugged all the other vampires around me goodbye, then I turned and left the airport with my oblivious human father and my edgy, protective wolf-friend. I had a feeling I was in for a long, uncomfortable ride home, and I was right. I just tried to stick to the script, telling Charlie about my comfortable but mostly unexciting stay with the Denalis. Jacob did pretty well, laughing at the right cues and inserting the occasional joke or wry remark. We both ran out of things we could say around Charlie before the car ride ended. We weren't exactly moving at supernatural speed. After about twenty minutes of awkward silence, Charlie took the easy out and commented on how good-looking Peter and Charlotte were, and how stunningly beautiful the Denalis were, particularly the three succubi. Jacob and I both resorted to feigning sleep at that point, but even that was uncomfortable, for me at least. I had to keep up the pretense well enough to avoid further conversation, but when I actually would start falling asleep, I struggled against the welcoming darkness, knowing that I would have terrible nightmares if I gave into that deceptively soothing void. The last thing I needed to do in front of Charlie was sleep-talk about evil vampires and wake up sobbing hybrid tears over Edward's death...

Edward was still handsome, but he looked human. He felt human. When he reached out and took my hand, his hand felt soft and warm, and when I looked up into his eyes, they were green. We were surrounded by soft, warm white light, and nothing else. There was no real environment to speak of, nothing above us, nothing below us, and nothing around us. There was just an endless abyss of white light, but as we walked, the ground below us was smooth and solid. This was not the nightmare I'd been expecting. No words were spoken between us. We just held hands and walked. We walked for what felt like hours, but neither of us tired, and our path never ended. There was no danger here, no pain, no struggle or strife. We were safe. We were free. We were free… I looked up at Edward again, seeing his familiar crooked smile. He nodded once, his soft green eyes full of warmth and love. We were silent. We were still. He was free…

When I woke, I didn't scream, but my cheeks were wet and tingling from tears. I realized I was back in my bedroom, in my bed, and I was wrapped in a pair of cold arms. I rolled over and came face to face with Jasper. Looking over his shoulder, I saw Peter in my rocking chair and Char perched on my windowsill. "I was expecting nightmares," Jasper murmured softly, "but you continue to surprise me. I already sedated Charlie, and I was ready to either shake you awake or drown you in lethargy too, but you were so peaceful. I've never felt such welcoming, warm peace, in fact. You didn't sleep-talk, either."

"Such a disappointment," Peter drawled melodramatically. "Char and I heard the stories; we came for the show."

"Sorry, no refunds," I yawned. Peter and Char laughed quietly, but my smile remained peaceful, untainted by humor. Jasper's expression mirrored mine. I clutched at the feeling of peace from the dream, the feeling cycling between me and Jasper. I guess he was clinging to the feeling too. We were silent and still.

"Spread it around at least?" Char murmured softly. I knew Jasper had projected the feeling to the other two war wounded vampires when I heard their gasps. The gasps were soon followed by soft moans of pleasure that held not the slightest bit of lust. It was like the feeling was massaging knots of anger, fear, and pain away. I found myself echoing the sound. "Why on earth were you crying?" Char gasped breathlessly. "In relief?" She guessed. I nodded.

"I was with Edward, but he was human," I breathed. "He had green eyes and soft, warm skin. We were holding hands, walking through this endless abyss of warm, white light… Nothing could harm us there. We were safe and free. We never said anything. He just walked with me, and he smiled and nodded once. He was telling me he was safe. He was free. There was only peace…"

Slowly, reality came crawling back into my body, clawing at my mind and biting deep into my heart. Jasper let out a low hiss that was echoed by his old comrades, since he was still projecting. Tears clouded my vision again, and when I cried this time, it wasn't from relief. "I didn't have a nightmare, but we're living in one," I said, clutching at Jasper's shirt and crying into his chest. I heard fabric tearing and I immediately pulled back. I didn't think I'd been gripping Jasper's shirt that hard, but I could see that I'd torn it. A sob escaped me, and I was grateful that Jasper had preemptively sedated Charlie. Jasper pulled me back into his arms.

"Shh, it's okay, sweetheart," he murmured soothingly, stroking my hair and rubbing my back. "You're just getting stronger. It's all part of the change. You'll adjust, just like we all did, probably even faster because the change is happening slowly. You can make little adjustments as needed, instead of going straight from minimal strength to maximum strength."

"That's not why I'm crying," I sniffed. "I'm crying because my change, fast or slow, is under their control now. Despite my shield, they've already got their strings wrapped around us. They destroyed Edward before they killed him. Yes, if things hadn't happened the way they did, we probably wouldn't have realized we're true mates, but the price of that realization was his freedom, his innocence, and his life!" I sobbed.

"He's safe now, sweetheart," Jasper said in a tight voice, hugging me closer. "He's gone, but he's finally free and at peace. Before you, he was lonely and miserable in this life, and the Volturi enslaved him and broke him. He's at peace now, Bella. After a century of suffering that was only briefly eased by your love, he's finally completely free and at peace. You felt it. He was wrong about what awaits us after this life. It seems Carlisle's belief is closer to the truth. Deep down, Edward was truly innocent, and his pure heart is being rewarded. He's safe and happy now, Bella. He wanted you to know that."

"Just look at Eleazar, sweet pea," Peter said, coming over and sitting on the foot of my bed, massaging my feet gently through the comforter. "After you cut his strings, Jasper coached him in ways to cope with the atrocities he blindly committed, but now that he has his true memories and complete free will back, no matter what he does, what he's done will haunt him forever."

Charlotte sat beside me on the bed and brushed my hair away from my neck, lightly tracing the scar there with her cool, thin finger. "As you can see, these aren't goin' away," she said gently. "Even after your change is complete, they'll remain, 'cause they aren't human scars. We aren't as discontent with what we are as Rosalie is, but one big downside of vampirism is the permanence of every scar, physical and emotional. You know our story, sugar. Do ya know why Peter and I are able to live happy lives now, despite all we did when we were under Maria's control?" I shook my head, no longer sobbing, but blinking away silent tears that crept sluggishly into my hair as I looked up at Charlotte. "Because we have each other," she said simply.

"There'll always be bad days," Peter admitted, "when the pain hurts a little too much, or when the guilt cuts a little too deep, but your true mate will carry you through it and remind you that their love is just as permanent. Eleazar's hurtin' bad now, but he'll be alright, because he has his Carmen. As soon as Edward was set free, he realized the one he loved really was the true mate of another. Alice helped the Major a lot, but no one can see the change you've made in him better than us. He glows around you, sweet pea. Alice gave him hope, but you gave him peace. Even in violent times, he'll find peace in you, and you'll find the same in him. Edward had no mate to help carry him through his darkness. Sure, Tanya's always been interested, and I'm sure she'd've tried, but she wasn't his true mate any more than you were. No one could've helped him with the burden he carried, not enough. Only death gave him that reprieve. You did all you could for him, darlin', and he died doin' all he could for you. He went knowin' his final act was done for good. That's all any of us can ask for."

"How many more will have to go, though?" I asked almost pleadingly. "We don't need you or Alice to tell us our world as we know it is going to explode soon. Everything is going to change. People will fight, people will die, and the repercussions of what we do could change the world forever. What can be done now? Where do we go from here?"

Peter smiled, but even in the dark room I could see the shadows in his red eyes, and I felt a heavy weight settle on my heart. "You said you don't need me to tell ya a fight's comin', but I'm gonna tell you what I saw in my mind the moment I laid eyes on you."

"What did you see?" I prompted.

"I saw you and Jasper, side by side, happy together." I half-laughed and lightly kicked Peter.

"Glad to hear it, but that has nothing to do with the fight to come," I grumbled. Peter shrugged.

"War is unpredictable, sweet pea. You can make plans and rally allies, but tactics can fail and strategies can crumble. I only see the inevitable."

The following days passed by in a series of bursts and lulls, so I lost all track of time. Some days were spent at school or with Charlie, playing human. At one point, I went to see another movie with Angela and Ben. Some days were spent with my growing vampire family. Peter cracked more jokes about the wolves than Emmett did, but coming from Peter it sounded more like affectionate teasing. On one of my days spent at the rez, I found the wolves also seemed oddly fond of Peter and Char both, despite the fact that they were human-drinkers. Peter said it was because he explained that they only fed from dangerous criminals or people already dying from other causes, but I was still skeptical. Maybe the feeling of camaraderie that came from fighting as allies was enough to change the pack's perception of them? Even that seemed like a stretch. Still, the truth was apparent. Though they'd been nicknamed 'Herculeech' and 'Xenaleech' by the wolves, it was clear that Peter and Char had, by some miracle, wormed their way into the pack's hearts. The wolves denied the bond vehemently when I called them out on it, but I knew they just couldn't admit to themselves that they actually liked any vampires. Well, all of them but Seth. He admitted it, much to his sister's chagrin. I actually found the whole thing entertaining as hell, but when they'd start guessing where Victoria's head was and what Annabeth was doing with it, I'd quickly become sick and leave the room. Finally, when our next trip to Volterra was only two or three days away, Alice and Peter called a family meeting.

"Jasper, I know you had a different plan in mind, but you need to propose to Bella now," Alice began bluntly. So much for surprise and romanticism. Very unlike Alice. Had something bad had happened when she gave Irwin some of my blood a couple days before?

"No, Bella. I gave that to Irwin with strict instructions not to drink it until the night before your wedding and your change." Alice obviously saw what I was going to ask.

"Alice, what's going on?" Esme asked, "What have you and Peter seen?"

"The only way to keep our legs from bein' cut from under us before the real fightin' even starts," Peter growled indignantly.

"The only thing Aro likes more than getting his way is getting his way faster, and on a grander scale," Alice said grimly. "Unfortunately, for the safety of everyone involved, all our original plans have to change. The fact that Bella's gifts are bloodborne changes everything."

"Because of what happened with Edward, Aro more than likely knows that already," Eleazar commented.

"Yes, but he doesn't know we've figured that out yet," Alice countered, "and he doesn't know that she already freed you, and that Irwin will soon be completely free as well."

"Soon?" I asked, "Just how soon are we talking about?"

Alice flinched. She actually flinched and stepped back and to the side, so she was slightly behind Peter. "A couple weeks," she squeaked out.

"What?!" I growled, jumping to my feet. "No offense, Jasper," I told him in a brief aside. "My answer is yes. Of course I want to marry you, but so fast…" I turned back to Alice and Peter. "What about graduating first, making my disappearance less suspicious? We knew we'd eventually have to fake my death, especially with Charlie being a cop, so he wouldn't get suspicious and start snooping around, but we were supposed to have more time together. I was going to call him for a while after leaving, gradually decreasing the frequency of my calls. I wanted to soften the blow!" I growled again, kicking my chair aside in my rage, not expecting it to go flying through the nearest window. I closed my eyes in humiliation and frustration. I was right. The Volturi already had their strings around us, and I could almost feel them tightening, one tightening around my neck like a noose.

"Aro's at his most dangerous when he's afraid," Eleazar commented again, the shadows in his eyes only making the noose feel tighter, almost to the point of choking me. "A bloodborne shield within Volterra could spell disaster for him. I'm sure he's very afraid right now."

"But the threat he fears only exists while blood still runs in her veins," Peter said gravely. "Moving up the time of her change will ease his fears, and maskin' the fact that we're doin' it against our will by combining it with a lavish wedding will further appease him, and that'll buy us a little more time to prepare for the inevitable fight."

"Most religious vampires are pagan," Alice explained, "and one of the most significant pagan holidays, Beltane, falls on the first of May in the northern hemisphere. It will be the cherry on top for Aro. He'll invite vampires from all over the world to celebrate Beltane in Volterra with the wedding and changing of a human Saturno, possibly the last of her kind. You'll hate just about every bit of the spectacle, Bella, but Aro will love it, and the short notice will keep him and every other vampire in Volterra so busy that it won't even cross his mind to read any of us for signs of deception or rebellion."

"We still have one obligatory visit to pay before then," I reminded her, "in just a couple days. Was it not just proven to us that things can go disastrously wrong in two days?"

"Only you, Jasper, Peter, and Char will go this time," Alice said decisively and confidently.

"Frankly, it was stupid of y’all to go with Bella every time," Peter said bluntly. "Your contract says only Bella has to come, but all who choose to come with her are bound to the grounds for the full forty-eight hours. Y'all know how suddenly the pixie's visions can change. I know y'all wanted Bella to feel safe and supported, but part of supportin' her is makin' sure her territory is secure." Peter looked directly at Jasper before finishing his little rant with, "Really, Major, I know our mates make us crazy sometimes, but what were you thinkin'?" Jasper growled softly, but he looked embarrassed. I loosed a louder growl at Peter and he raised his hands in surrender, though he rolled his eyes while doing so.

"After what happened during our last visit, no one will find it suspicious when the majority of us stay behind," Alice assured everyone. She actually cracked a small smile before adding, "And sending only Jasper, Peter, and Char guarantees our plans won't be exposed too soon." Peter and Charlotte chuckled lightly, and Jasper cracked a small, smug smile beside me. I elbowed him lightly.

"Wanna let me in on the joke?" I grumbled.

"Aro never tries to read my mind because he's afraid of what he'll see, not because he knows you'll instinctively shield me," Jasper said, laughing mirthlessly. "For such an evil bastard, he's just as disconcerted by our scars as almost everyone else. He likes to believe he's the most powerful and dangerous vampire around, so he's not too eager to see what Peter, Char, and I are capable of. He saw some of it when he read Edward's mind. He doesn't want to see the extended version."

"He's afraid of you," I rephrased his response. He nodded once, still radiating dark confidence. "If Aro's at his most dangerous when he's afraid, isn't that a bad thing?" I asked anxiously. Jasper's smile softened and the dark glint in his eyes disappeared, but I still felt his confidence when he pulled me down onto his lap and wrapped me in his arms.

"Not when he knows you and I are a package deal. He knows playing the rules-with-an-iron-fist card and killing Edward destroyed the good and fair ruler façade he was trying to lure you in with. This is puppetry and a chess match, and he knows he has to plan his moves as carefully as we do. Even while you're still human, we're the second largest and strongest coven in the vampire world now, and not easily trifled with. He wants you too much to do anything too drastic again, not yet. He has to do damage control first and lure you back in. I know you feel his strings tuggin' at you, but he's only got us in check. As long as we play our next moves carefully, we can survive in check for a long time."

"A stalemate," I offered, remembering my one chess match with Jasper that didn't end with me outright losing. It ended in a stalemate.

"Yeah, but this isn't a game that can be ended by a stalemate," Jasper said gravely. "This is a death match; we're playing for checkmate. Since we're the ones cornered right now, we just have to prolong the stalemate as long as we can and hope they slip up before we do."

"That… That doesn't inspire much confidence, Major," I said shakily.

I yelped when Jasper suddenly stood, picking me up and running outside with me. He ran for a good ten minutes, stopping several miles from the house, in the middle of the woods. He set me down gently, and he slowly pushed me back against a broad tree before leaning in close, his right cheek grazing my left. "There'll always be bad days, when the pain hurts a little too much, or when the guilt cuts a little too deep," he softly repeated Peter's words, his cool breath fanning across my cheek and ear, "but your true mate will carry you through it and remind you that their love is just as permanent." Jasper placed a light kiss on the spot where my cheek met my ear, sending chills ran up and down my spine. "Excellent wretch," he quoted, "perdition catch my soul, but I do love thee. And when I love thee not, chaos is come again." Jasper was projecting nothing, but the depth of emotion prevalent in his mellifluous words alone made my knees quiver. That said, I decided I needed to put an end to the Othello references. It really took quite a bit of effort on my part, but I shook my head and I made myself push Jasper away a little.

"No," I said as firmly as I could, but Jasper had started projecting. Though he was careful to hold back a little, the love and lust washing over me had me clutching at the tree I was pinned against for more support. "No," I said again, and he eased up on the projection. I could think coherently again. "I'm not Juliet to Edward's Romeo. I'm not Desdemona to your Othello. While those are both great love stories, they're also tragedies, and after spending more time fighting for their love than enjoying it, in both stories the star-crossed lovers die in the end. I refuse to accept that. That won't be us. Though our respective dark times have been extremely different, I'm just beginning to see that I've dwelt in my darkness too long, clung to it even, but no more. Not now that I have my true mate with me. I don't want to be Juliet or Desdemona. I want to be Helena or Rosalind. I want to be like one of those strong, self-aware women who defied the odds and found happiness with their loves. I'm seeing things in a different light now, and I no longer see romanticism in sacrifice and following each other in death. I want to live with my love. Peter only sees the inevitable, and he sees us happy together. We can't know if that happiness will be short-lived or eternal, but we'll fight for the latter, because we're inevitable. Every step we've taken has drawn us together, so we are not star-crossed. We'll face any trials ahead of us and we'll carry each other through. We will not look at the bad hand we've been dealt, curse the fates for dooming us, and give up." It was not the noose around my neck that strangled me, but my own emotions that cut off my voice and left me gasping for breath. Jasper smiled softly and closed the distance between us again, kissing away the venomous tears sliding down my face.

"The object and the pleasure of mine eye," Jasper quoted A Midsummer Night's Dream, "is only Helena." Jasper's lips crashed into mine in a demanding, scorching kiss. The impact crushed me into the rough bark of the old oak behind me and I felt a slight sting on my back, but I returned the kiss with equal fervor, entangling my fingers in Jasper's windblown hair, ignoring the small pain. Jasper could not ignore it so easily. His nostrils flared, his eyes turned smoldering black, and he loosed a wild, unrestrained growl. I was bleeding. I could just barely feel the trickle of wetness below my left shoulder blade.

"Take it," I gasped, unafraid. "Jasper, Major, take it! I trust you, and it will heal you and protect you. I love you." Another feral growl ripped from Jasper's chest and he kissed me harshly and heatedly, the whites of his eyes beginning to darken. Jasper, Major, Othello, Demetrius, names meant nothing. All were one, and that one was mine, my true mate and my true love. In one swift move, he ripped my shirt from my body, but his touch was gentle, even reverent as he took my shoulders and turned me around.

"You trust me with the elixir of your life and all the power it bears," my love whispered reverently indeed. He unclasped my bra and I let it fall down my arms. When his cool tongue caught the drop of blood running down my back, I gasped and braced my hands against the tree I faced. He moved slowly upward, lapping away the small trail of blood until he reached the small scratch from which it came. As Eleazar had done much less intimately, Jasper lightly grazed the clotting cut with his teeth, coaxing a little more blood from the wound. His cool lips encircled the source of the sting I felt, and he gently sucked at my heated skin, the sensation making me moan.

"Jasper," I breathed, rising up on my toes and bending forward slightly at the waist, giving him easier access. He growled again, but he only took a couple more mouthfuls. I heard more fabric falling, and I was distracted by speckles of pink and gold light dancing across my skin and illuminating the wonderfully textured bark above my head. I turned to face Jasper and found him stripped completely bare before me. The sun was setting and the clouds had parted. The captivating colors of the sunset shattered off his scarred skin and illuminated my skin, making my own scars sparkle. I kicked off my shoes and pulled off my socks, then I unbuttoned my jeans and pushed them down, catching my lacy boyshorts as I went and stripping myself of them too. Jasper took me in his arms as soon as I kicked the denim and lace aside.

"You are so beautiful," he said softly. His eyes were still Major-black and his accent was thicker, his tone deeper. Still, I just saw Jasper, and his beauty nearly brought me to tears. He gripped the backs of my thighs and lifted me, and I automatically wrapped my legs around his waist and braced my hands on his scar-textured shoulders. I closed the gap between our faces and kissed his lips softly.

"We're beautiful together," I said against his lips, only briefly breaking our tender, loving kiss. I licked his full lower lip and he opened for me, letting me taste the sweetness inside his mouth while he shifted my hips until I felt the tip of his hard length press against my wet and ready entrance.

"I love you, Bella," he said, and he pulled my hips down and thrust his hips upward, sheathing himself in me to the hilt in one swift move.

"Jasper!" I moaned his name. "Major!" I cried out in ecstasy as he quickly set a hard, fast pace. I ran my fingernails firmly across his upper back and across the base of his neck, eliciting a groan from him that turned into a loud growl when I tilted my head down and lightly bit the side of his neck. He lightly grazed my neck with his teeth and pulled out of me, setting me back on my feet and turning me around again. He gently pushed me down and forward until I was on all fours before him. I heard and felt him kneel behind me, and I felt his cool shaft align with my entrance again.

"Bella!" He roared as he took me from behind, drowning out my gasps and moans of pleasure. His thrusts were slower, but harder and deeper. He reached around me and began playing with my clit and I came hard. His pace remained steady, and he continued teasing my most sensitive spot with his fingers, and my screams of pleasure turned to whimpers. It was almost too much. Still buried deep inside me, he pulled me up by my shoulders, so I was straddling his thighs where he knelt, my back pressed against his chest. His hands moved up to lightly fondle my small breasts.

"Jasper," I whimpered again. "Too much. You finish." I rose up on my knees and slid back down his shaft. Jasper groaned, grabbed my hips, and lifted me up again. He pulled me back down roughly and growled at the feeling. The vibrations sent me over the edge again and my inner muscles clamped down on him hard. After a few more frantic thrusts, he came with me, growling my name once more. He gently slid out of me and I sprawled out across a patch of soft, young grass, utterly spent.

It took me a moment to realize Jasper was nowhere to be seen, but when I did notice, I didn't worry. A strange tugging sensation in my chest told me he was still close. A couple minutes later, he emerged from the surrounding trees, still in all his sparkling naked glory, carrying a dead fox. "Thank you for your life and blood, may you find peace in death," I murmured the blessing I'd come up with the day I fed from that first lion.

"Thank you for your life and blood, may you find peace in death," Jasper echoed, nodding to the fox in gratitude. He liked my way of hunting. So did the rest of our vegetarian family. They all thanked their kills for sustaining them, following my example.

Though the fox was small, Jasper and I still shared it. We found feeding from the same animal highly intimate and erotic. By the time we were done, he was visibly ready for round two. I laughed at him and picked up the dry fox, carrying it over to a thick cluster of ferns and easing its body under the sheltering leaves, petting the little animal once more in gratitude. Jasper walked over and kissed my lips softly, pulling me away from the fox, guiding me back to that soft patch of grass.

"I just thought of something," I giggled as we stretched out across the fragrant spring blades.

"What?" Jasper asked, grinning widely as my lust-laced humor washed over him. His eyes were amber and white again, all traces of the Major gone.

"I'm actively changing because I am still getting small doses of venom," I said, wiggling my hips suggestively. Jasper blinked, and then he burst out laughing.

"I hadn't thought of it that way," he laughed, "but you're probably right. Vampires have been having sex with humans for a thousand years, but sex is usually followed by a bite, either changing the human or making a meal of them. Tanya, Kate, and Irina are the only other exceptions I know of, and the humans they've been with haven't been bitten beforehand. You were bitten six times while you were still a virgin, and now you're probably absorbing small amounts of venom from me."

"I'm guessing I get larger doses when I give you oral," I commented casually, as if I was talking about the weather. Jasper groaned. Smiling mischievously, I crawled over to Jasper and straddled his waist, sitting well above where he so clearly wanted me. "By the way," I murmured, batting my eyelashes seductively and tapping my left shoulder with my fingertips, "do I taste as good as I smell?"

Jasper didn't answer with words, but he growled hungrily and pulled me in for another searing kiss.


	23. Rings of Saturn

♀︎(Bella's POV)

"Congratulazioni! Questa é una notizia meravigilosa!" Aro gushed when I showed him the simple, beautiful engagement ring adorning my left hand. It was a flawless, one-carat, impeccably cut, round diamond on a perfectly proportionate, simple silver band. It was elegant but understated, and I loved it. Aro probably thought it horrendously small and plain, but the news of the engagement certainly seemed to please him, and we hadn't even dangled the real bait before him yet.

"I know it's a lot to ask, Aro," I began pleadingly, bowing my head and fiddling with my ring, "but we were hoping we could have our wedding here, on Beltane." I turned and hugged Jasper close while Peter and Charlotte watched our performance from the doorway. I looked lovingly into Jasper's eyes, and he returned my adoring gaze. "I want to move my change up to the same day, too. It will make things a little harder for us at first, and saying goodbye to my human friends and family so soon is going to be difficult, but I am a Saturno. I was born to be a vampire, and I have my true mate now. I'm ready to start my forever with him."

"Better and better," Aro responded, rising from his throne and smiling brightly. "A Beltane celebration like no other! A Saturno weds the renowned God of War, and he changes her on their wedding night! I'm honored to host such an event, cara mia. It will be splendorous! Vampires from all over the world will gather to witness such a historical occasion!"

Peter and Charlotte were smiling behind us, carefully concealing any other thoughts or emotions they might be experiencing. Not trusting my expression, and knowing Aro was waiting for a response of some kind, I improvised and flung my arms around him instead of Jasper, giving him what I hoped he'd read as an appreciative hug while keeping my face hidden from his gaze.

"Thank you, Aro!" I flinched when I heard my voice crack a little, but I could feel no tears forming in my eyes, so I tried to keep my tone light and happy to cover the slip. Jasper also helped by projecting just a hint of guilt into me, to make my next words come out right. "I know it's a huge imposition⏤It's only two weeks!" Aro laughed and returned my embrace gently.

"Vampire speed, dear little Bella," he laughed haughtily, "and there are plenty of us here in Volterra. We could have an extravagant wedding prepared for you even sooner, if you so wished it, but the date you chose couldn't be more perfect. I worried that recent events would make you even more hesitant to begin your new life, but I am so pleased to see my worries were unfounded." Aro gently pushed me back so he could see my face, but he kept his hands on my shoulders. I plastered a wide smile on my face, deeply relieved that I'd managed to keep the tears away. "I'm so proud of you, cara mia. You're finally coming around and embracing your destiny. Human Bella is already gone. I see a true Saturno before me now." To my immense horror and disgust, Aro bent forward a little and kissed my forehead. Jasper lost control for a moment and loosed a low growl. To my surprise, Aro immediately released me and stepped back, looking genuinely apologetic.

"My apologies, Major Whitlock," Aro spoke before any of us could attempt our own apology for disrespect. "Your mate bears the human equivalent of your mark now. We're all territorial with our mates, especially in these early stages. I overstepped. Why don't you and your mate take your old comrades on a tour of the grounds? That should help you relax, and I have much to do to get preparations underway for your Beltane nuptials."

It was done. Aro took the bait, and he made no attempt to read anyone's mind, just as Alice had foreseen. As instructed, Jasper and I gave Peter and Charlotte a thorough tour of Volterra, taking the opportunity to properly introduce them to Irwin. We didn't even have to go looking for him. He and Jane teleported to us when we reached the banquet hall where I and the few humans working in Volterra occasionally gathered to eat. After introductions were done, Irwin nudged Jane and she took a timid step toward me. Her uncharacteristically gentle red eyes met mine briefly, but then she quickly looked away. If she were human, she probably would've been blushing. She looked more vulnerable than I'd ever seen her. I took a small step closer to her.

"Jane?" I prompted.

"Congratulations on your engagement," she blurted, but I could tell that wasn't what she'd come to say, so I nodded to her in thanks and waited. After another short silence, Jane reached inside her pocket and withdrew an object I recognized immediately. My breath hitched and I felt like I was going to cry again, but just as before, no tears came.

"I found it in his room that night," Jane said delicately, handing me Edward's Cullen crest wristband. "I thought you might want it," she said softly. "If nothing else, I think he would have wanted you to have it. I know you had your problems, but it shouldn't have ended the way it did. I'm sorry." With that, she immediately turned back to Irwin and grabbed his hand. Irwin nodded once to us, and then he teleported away with Jane in tow.

Not thinking of Jasper's reaction, I tugged Edward's wristband onto my right arm and stroked the silver crest lightly with my fingertips. Jasper didn't react angrily. He did the opposite. Jasper pulled me to him and hugged me fervidly. He understood; he was still struggling with what happened too.

"I don't think I can cry anymore," I said softly. Conscious of Peter and Char, I dropped my voice even lower and murmured, "I think that last dose of venom did it." Jasper chuckled quietly and I raised my voice again, "When we spoke with Aro, and just now with Jane, I felt like I should be crying⏤part of me wants to cry right now⏤but I can't. I can't cry anymore."

Jasper kissed my forehead, right where Aro had kissed me, lingering there much longer, then he rested his forehead on mine. He wrapped his hand around the wristband on my arm. "Keep it," he said. "Since I'm taking my old name back, I'm having a Whitlock crest made for you as we speak, but we should have given you a Cullen crest a long time ago. I'm sure we can have the same crest on that wristband set on a more delicate bracelet if that's what you'd prefer."

"No," I said firmly. "It's still his. It's staying the same way it was when he wore it. It just needs to be tightened a little to fit. Your crest is different. I'm your mate and soon-to-be wife. I'm joining your family, but I'm keeping a memento of my brother."

"Of our brother," Jasper corrected, giving me another firm squeeze.

"Our brother," I amended.

"This is the Whitlock crest, sweet pea," Peter said, showing me a similar leather wristband on his arm. His wristband was made of brown leather instead of black, and the crest was gold. It depicted a rearing horse in a vertical gold oval. Perched atop the oval was a small falcon with its wings spread wide. The falcon's head was turned to the right, facing a pea-sized sun at the tip of its right wing. A crescent moon capped the tip of its left wing. Below the oval was an inscription: Copia, sed Ipse. The entire image and the inscription were encased in a vertical gold rectangle.

"Copia, sed ipse," Jasper recited. "Rampant, but true. It's Latin."

"It suits you," I said, moving closer to Peter and touching the gold horse. "All three of you, but especially you, Jasper. It speaks of both sides of you; wild and dangerous when need be, but also steadfast and loyal. The way the falcon faces the sun also fits, because while you have a dark side, the lighter side is there too, and you always try to do good and do what's best. I love it." I turned back to Jasper and saw he only wore his Cullen wristband. "But why aren't you wearing yours? You said you're taking back the name Whitlock."

"It's back at the house, in my room," Jasper said. "A trustworthy businessman, Jenks, is taking care of all the paperwork now. Our family's been doing business with him for decades. He doesn't know what we are, but he knows we aren't normal, and he knows to keep that much to himself. I just want the change to be official before I make the switch. Copia, sed ipse. Until all the paperwork is done, I'm a loyal and proud Cullen."

"Isn't your last name Hale right now?" I laughed.

"Technicalities," Jasper responded, rolling his eyes.

"Copia, sed ipse?" I countered, smiling tauntingly. In the time it took me to blink, Jasper was upon me, knocking my feet out from under me and sweeping me up into his arms. I uttered a little scream and flailed, but I couldn't squirm out of his encaging arms.

"Rosalie quickly came to despise her family almost as much as Royce King," Jasper explained seriously, though his dark gold eyes twinkled with mirth and mischief. "They are the ones that threw her at him, after all. She only keeps the name Hale because she refuses to let go of her human life, and our current cover story is that I'm her twin, so the documentation has to match. In my heart, I've been a Cullen since I married Alice, and you chose to revert to my human name, so I will too. I'm glad you made that choice, but the choice was always yours. I would have changed my name to Swan if that was your preference." I laughed lightly and snuggled into his unrelenting embrace.

"I've considered myself a Cullen every now and then," I said, ignoring the brief stab of pain in my chest as I clumsily reminded myself of the few months I'd been abandoned, "but Whitlock fits much better. It's my mate's true name."

Charlotte moved a little closer and lifted me out of Jasper's arms, setting me back on my feet and adding, "And it's about time I got a real sister." I once again felt the urge to cry, knowing no tears would come. I just pulled my new sister close and hugged her with all my strength.

"It's not like Aro doesn't know about all of you, Jake," I tried to comfort my friend as we walked along our beach. "I'll get through the wedding and the change, they'll probably keep me for few weeks to see what I'm like as a newborn, and we'll be back before you know it. We won't be able to go out in public, at least not here in Washington, because everyone has to believe I'm dead, but we'll still be able to see each other. Like you said after you killed Laurent, I'll still be Bella and you'll still be Jake. Eventually, this whole mess will be behind us and we'll be able to relax and just go on like we always have."

"This isn't right, Bella," Jacob growled, throwing a large stone far out into the ocean, "and I'm not just talking about what's happening to you. I'll admit it, okay? Your good vamps have grown on me, especially the chewed up trio, but I don't trust the Volturi one bit, and I know none of you do either. They're up to something, and this leech leader Aro is way too obsessed with you. It's sick." Jacob punctuated that last statement by kicking another stone even farther out into the water.

"Can't argue with you there," I replied, cringing. "Cara mia this, and dear little Bella that. When he kissed my forehead, I wanted to claw my own skin off, but of course letting my gift-bearing blood spill right in front of him would've ruined our plan and pissed him off." Jacob snorted and chucked another heavy stone. He sighed heavily then, and he came to an abrupt stop, plopping down on a large log and patting the spot next to him. I sat down quickly and gracefully.

"Just promise me one thing?" He said as we both stared out at the softly curling waves. Instead of blurting out a response I might regret, I just turned to look at him, waiting for him to continue. He sighed again. "Promise me when you find the rat we all smell that you won't go all self-sacrificial martyr-Bella on us." Jacob turned to look in my eyes, and the anxiety in his eyes pierced right through me. "Promise me that you'll take advantage of all the people ready and willing to fight for you. Promise me you'll ask for help when you need it."

I threw my arms around Jacob, noticing immediately that he felt even hotter to me than he had mere weeks ago. I was growing colder. "Just so you know, Jake, this is me crying in gratitude," I said, dry-eyed. "Yes, I promise."

"Wow, Bells, what's the occasion?" Charlie said as soon as he walked in the door and smelled what I was cooking. When he walked into the kitchen and saw the sheer amount of food covering every surface in the room, his eyes widened. "Seriously, what's the occasion?" He sounded genuinely puzzled; he really was trying to remember an important event he'd forgotten. A year ago, the expression on his face would've had me doubling over laughing. On this occasion, I forced a laugh, grateful for the second time that I'd lost the ability to cry.

"A few reasons," I corrected, "no occasion." Charlie smiled and sat down in his usual chair, stretching out his legs with a soft groan.

"This should be interesting," he chuckled. "Shoot."

"Do you want the good news or the bad news first?" I asked seriously.

"Good, then bad. People do it the other way around when they're trying to avoid talking about the bad part." My dad, the cop.

I forced another smile and told the brutally honest truth, "Well, I guess I shouldn't make assumptions about how you'd define the news, but I'm really happy for Mom." Charlie raised an eyebrow. "I talked with her on the phone earlier," I continued. "She's… Well, the good news for me is that I'm going to get a baby brother or sister." I watched a dozen different expressions cross Charlie's face while I tried to keep a smile on mine. I actually wasn't sure how I felt about the news. This was just a show for Charlie, to make it clear that I expected to live for at least nine more months. Renee never had been the best mother, but I was willing to believe she'd finally matured and settled down enough for the role, and the new child would take my place in her life when I died.

"Well, good for her," Charlie finally said. The sentiment and the small smile on his face seemed genuine. "I bet she'll really cherish the second round more than she did the first," he added. Apparently, he'd come to the same conclusion I had. "That came out wrong," he said contritely. I understood and cut him off before he could continue.

"I know what you mean. She's had more time to grow and figure herself out. You guys had me young." Charlie just nodded, blushing slightly. The subtle burn in my throat flared briefly. My deep, head-to-toe blushes really must have been torturous to my vampire family.

"So, what's the bad news?" Charlie changed the subject. Ignoring the sting in my throat, I took a deep breath. I couldn't say the actual words, but this was goodbye.

"I'm only going to be here off and on for the next week or so," I said, feeling a small new hole tearing open in my chest with each word I spoke. "Angela invited me to spend the night at her place tomorrow, and then Alice and I have a couple shopping trips planned, and Peter and Char want to take me out one day so we can get to know each other better. We need to find prom dresses, and we also need more hiking gear for our next camping trip. I noticed the dent you already made in the frozen fish, and I don't want you bothering the Clearwaters too much or living off pizza and diner food. The enchiladas are for tonight. The chili, the veggie soup, and the chicken salad are for the next few days. I made two batches of chili because I'm freezing one batch for later."

"That news isn't all that bad, Bells," Charlie chuckled. "It's been an adjustment, but I'm getting used to sharing you again." Charlie's smile widened and he walked over and patted me on the back. "Besides, if I ever get too lonely, I can take Jake's tip and moonlight as an innkeeper. There're a lot of small houses in La Push full of big boys. Heck, even Leah Clearwater looks like an Olympic athlete these days, and she's the same age as you. Maybe she'd like to borrow your room once in a while." I forced a laugh at Charlie's joke and hugged him.

"She really might, actually," I said. "Leah, I mean. You won't be alone here, and she'll get a break from all those rowdy boys. You really should ask her about it, Dad. She'll probably love it, and I'll feel better about leaving you." Those last two words did it. The new hole in my heart throbbed. Once again, I thought of what a blessing in disguise my inability to cry was. I just felt an odd cooling sensation in my eyes, like I was sticking my head in the freezer. Charlie hugged me back.

"If it makes you happy, Bells, I'll invite her over tomorrow night."

"Do you like it, Bella?" Angela asked me as she opened the door and let me back into her bedroom. She was wearing what would be her prom dress. One look told me she'd probably driven all the way to Seattle to shop for it, and she'd clearly paid more for it than last year's dress. She had reason to do so; she was a senior and a nominee for prom queen. She was stunned by the nomination, but I wasn't. Though some students disapproved of the fact that she still associated with me and Alice, they all knew as well as I did that it was because she was the nicest, most genuine girl in school. I was pretty sure she was going to win. I just wished I could be there to see her crowned.

"Like it? I love it! You look amazing, Ang." The dress was surprisingly sexy. Looking at it directly from the front or back, it looked like a fitted, knee-length, raspberry red sheath dress. On each side though, under the arms, were vertical panels of see-through black lace in a floral pattern that exposed a lot of skin. The colors of the dress made her skin tone glow. She really did look beautiful, and the fact that her small curves had filled out a little more over the last year didn't hurt either. Her posture was also straight and strong. Though her tone of voice gave away her lingering shyness, her self-confidence had grown a lot. Angela Weber, my one completely normal, completely human friend was growing, changing, and aging. She was about to start a new phase of her very normal life, and then another would follow, and then another, and then another, until her very mortal life came to a natural end, or at least I hoped it would.

"Ben is going to get his suit in a few days," Angela commented. "I just wish he'd been nominated too. Jessica won't shut up about nominees needing to go with nominees, that it's about social status and what not. I don't see why it matters, since she and Mike will probably win anyway."

"I don't think so," I voiced my opinion aloud, unfiltered. One good thing about my imminent human-world death was the freedom to throw diplomacy out the window. "Not Jessica, anyway. She really only became popular by association, and she's the worst gossip in town. I'm not the first person she's turned on, and everyone knows it. You were nominated because you're the polar opposite. Honestly, I think the people who nominated her did so to stay on her good side. She's worse than Lauren, really. At least Lauren doesn't bother pretending to be nice and trustworthy. It's the two-faced ones like Jessica you have to watch out for…" I trailed off momentarily, my mind flashing to Aro, but I pushed the thought away and grabbed Angela's hand, lifting it over her head and giving her a twirl. She laughed. "You'll win, Ang. You just have to. You have my vote." Angela squealed and hugged me.

"You are coming, right?" She asked. "You and Jasper?" I forced a smile.

"And Alice," I lied. "She and I are going dress shopping tomorrow. It sounds odd, but we'll be going shopping for hiking gear a few days after that."

"Interesting juxtaposition," Angela laughed. "How have all those camping trips been going?"

"So, how kinky do these 'camping trips' get, Bellust?" Jessica laughed as I passed her and Lauren in the hallway the next day. Swallowing the growl that tried to burst from my chest, I rounded on the two girls and glared.

"Bellust? Seriously? What are you, thirteen?"

"At least I was still a virgin at that age," Jessica snapped. "Were you? Or was the shy, awkward, hard-to-get routine just an act from the beginning?"

Before Lauren could build up a full laugh, I strode over to her and Jessica and punched Jessica in the face. She cried out and stumbled back into Lauren. My nostrils flared and my throat burned when a little blood trickled from Jessica's nose. Oops. A few nearby students gasped. Lauren opened her mouth to start spewing her own insults, but I cut her off. "If you're going to gossip about everyone, at least get your facts straight. You want all the dirty details? Fine. Unlike you two, I was a virgin until this last Valentine's Day. Jasper Hale and I made love then. Edward and I never did more than kiss. He still is a virgin. None of the Cullens or Hales are swingers. Alice and Jasper broke up amicably before they all returned to Forks in January. According to Jasper, sex was okay between him and Alice, but nothing like what he and I have. That said, Emmett tells me we've still got nothing on him and Rose. I haven't the slightest idea what sex is like for Carlisle and Esme. They're like second parents to me. I'm not perverted enough to ask, but maybe you can schedule an appointment with Doctor Cullen and ask him yourself, since you have no shame."

I turned on my heel and walked toward the principal's office, ready to offer myself up for punishment and get it over with. It was worth it. I was vaguely aware of Jessica and Lauren shouting more insults at me, but the sound that stood out more was the light smattering of applause from some of the watching students and one, "Go, Bella!" from a boy somewhere behind me. Definitely worth it.

When I got out of detention later that day, Alice was gone, but I found Jasper, Peter, and Char waiting for me on drool-worthy motorcycles. Peter and Char were on one bike. Jasper left room for me to climb onto the other one behind him. He also had a jacket and helmet for me. Peter winked at me. "We heard badass-Bella came out to play today," he said, grinning like the cat that ate the canary, "badasses ride bikes." Char and Jasper laughed while I pulled on the riding jacket and helmet. I climbed on Jasper's bike and wrapped my arms around him.

"Copia, sed ipse!" I shouted triumphantly.

"Copia, sed ipse!" The three Whitlocks cried over the roar of their engines, and we tore out of the parking lot like bats out of hell.

Charlie wasn't angered by what I did at school. In fact, he said he was proud of me, but since he was still Chief Swan to the town of Forks, I couldn't tell anyone he'd said that. He was as sick of the gossip about me as I was, and he was happy to find out I knew how to throw a good punch, just in case. He had no idea what damage I'd be able to do with a good punch in a week. He'd never know.

For show, Alice and I did go dress shopping, and Alice made me put on the dress at home and show Charlie. I didn't fight her on it. I knew exactly what she was doing. She was making sure his last memories of me were of me looking beautiful and happy.

Three days after our little prom dress fashion show, I said one more goodbye to Charlie and climbed into my truck, the truck Alice and I would need for all the camping gear we were stocking up on. Their flashy cars didn't have enough trunk space. I didn't go shopping with Alice. She ran back to my house on foot and snuck out the few outfits and books I insisted on keeping with me. Meanwhile, Jasper and I rode to Seattle on his bike and got our new documentation from Jenks. Our wedding was a few days away, but on paper we were officially Jasper and Isabella Whitlock. Our new driver's licenses, IDs, and passports bore the same names. As for my truck, Peter and Emmett filled it with some excess camping gear they already had, drove it to a steep cliff near Port Angeles, made some expert maneuvers and skid marks on the road to make it look like I swerved to avoid something in the way, and drove it off the cliff. Unharmed, they swam and ran home to their mates from there. That was it. That was how I died. Isabella Marie Swan was no more, and for that matter, Alice Cullen was gone too.

Three days later, after our funerals, we all flew back to Volterra one day earlier than usual. It was Friday, April twenty-ninth. Beltane fell on Sunday, but our presence was required for rehearsal and for final preparations and fittings. I hadn't even seen my own wedding dress. Even that decision was made by the Volturi, but I couldn't even think about my fast approaching wedding and change. All I could think about was Charlie. Safely hidden from human eyes, I wished I could weep for him, and not just because I'd been forced to give him up. Angela would grieve for me and Alice, but in a little over a month she'd be off to college and she'd quickly move on with her life. Renee would break down, but Phil would be there to help her through it, and in nine months she'd have a new child to look after. My mom would only hear about my death once or twice. Charlie, on the other hand, would hear about it repeatedly for months to come. He'd hear the whole story over and over again for at least a couple weeks on the local news. He'd see pictures of me and Alice on television screens and in newspapers, and he might drive by the scene of the crash from time to time. He'd be surrounded by reminders of me and my tragic, untimely death as long as he stayed in Forks or any nearby town. I had half a mind to turn around, tell him everything, and bring him with us. His grief would be prolonged, and I couldn't ease that pain without endangering him.

Right on cue, as the first dry sob escaped me, Jasper pulled me onto his lap and cradled me against him. He let me scream and wail for a good hour without influencing my emotions. He knew that if I was going to get through the coming days with my sanity intact, I needed to get this out. It was frustrating enough that I couldn't even cry properly, but at least Aro wouldn't get the satisfaction of seeing evidence of the pain he was causing me on my face. I would give him this big wedding and changing ceremony, but nothing else.

Irwin, Jane, Alec, Felix, Demetri, and five other Guards whose names I didn't remember were waiting for us at the airport. According to them, with my help, we'd be teleporting back to Volterra in groups. Just looking at the sheer number of vampires I'd have to help Irwin carry, I felt exhausted.

"Part vampire or not, she can still get jetlag," Jasper protested on my behalf. "I can feel it. There's no way she can amplify that much right now. Even if I energized her, there are just too many of us, and don't even think about suggesting using her blood."

"Obviously not," Demetri snorted derisively. "We all saw what happened to Edward, and Master Aro still took it upon himself to remind everyone in the Guard that her freakish hybrid blood evidently makes vampires go insane." Demetri gave me a scathing look, and I couldn't help but wonder what had happened to vampire who'd laughed at Felix when I'd teased him about his foray into vegetarian hunting. Clearly, Aro and Caius had not taken that lightheartedness well. These Guards were hardened puppets again. Even Jane looked empty and cold. "Un cantante, indeed," Demetri sneered, bringing my attention back to him. He sniffed the air and growled, "A siren the likes of which sailors of old spoke of, a sinker of ships. We'll all be safer when you're properly changed, you poisonous chew toy." All thirteen members of my vampire family loosed growls of outrage and warning. Irwin glared daggers at Demetri. Jasper, Peter, and Charlotte looked absolutely murderous. Demetri flashed an infuriatingly fake smile and bowed in feigned apology.

"My apologies," he said. "Recent days have been trying, but I shouldn't have lashed out." Demetri boldly looked Jasper dead in the eye, though his smile held. "Congratulations on your engagement. I daresay most of the vampires in the world have heard of it by now, even if they haven't been invited to the wedding. The God of War takes a Saturno for a wife, a momentous event in our world." When Demetri turned back to me, he bowed curtly and added, "And welcome to our world, la mia signora. The shackles of your human life are but a memory now." I bit back my own growl and suppressed the urge to literally bite Demetri. Oh, how eloquently he mocked my misery. Jasper, Peter, and Charlotte also remained silent, but the three war veterans still looked murderous.

"May we compromise?" Carlisle interjected before anyone acted rashly. "Bella can do two or three amplified teleportations with Irwin, then she'll remain in Volterra while Irwin teleports smaller groups back, or those of us remaining can run to Volterra or travel by car. You can choose the groups. Bella just can't be left in Volterra without Jasper. Beyond those stipulations, we won't argue. Surely those are acceptable conditions?" Carlisle eventually talked everyone around, and we were all eventually teleported to Volterra without any more drama.

Once we were all in Volterra, tensions eased palpably. The Volterrans went their separate ways to tend to other duties, but I was allowed no time to rest and recharge after my amplifications. As soon as we all got our luggage to our usual rooms, Sulpicia and Athenadora, the mates and wives of Aro and Caius, arrived at my room with Heidi, the 'fisher' among the Guard. The dangerously sensual and seductive woman was carrying a very large garment bag in her arms.

"It's time for your fitting," Sulpicia proclaimed, regal and businesslike as usual. She was always perfectly polite, but cool and distant at the same time. Athenadora was much friendlier than her mate, Caius, but she still came off as haughty and supercilious compared to any of the vampires in my family.

"Major Whitlock, you're to go to Carlisle and Esme's room for your fitting," Athenadora politely instructed. "The other men in your coven are also being sent there. The women are being directed here." As soon as she finished speaking, before I had a chance to feel wary about being separated from Jasper, Alice skipped into the room and looped one of her arms through mine, smiling reassuringly at Jasper. He nodded to both of us and left, passing Rose in the doorway. The other women followed her in quick procession.

I had to give the Volturi some credit; I loved the gown they had specially made for me, though I had to force myself not to think of the cost of the garment. It was a strapless, ivory mermaid gown with a sweetheart neckline. Being vampires, they got the fit nearly perfect on sight alone. It only had to be taken in at the waist slightly. To top it al off, a sash was tied around my waist. The sash was ivory white with a metallic silver and gold floral pattern. Though I'd told no one of my intention to wear Edward's refitted Cullen wristband down the isle whether they liked it or not, the Volturi knew my engagement ring was silver, and the Whitlock crest ring wore on my right hand was gold. The purpose of the sash was clearly to make the mismatched metals look cohesive. It would also tie in the silver Cullen crest, though the worn black leather would clash a little. Oh well.

Surprisingly, the gown also showed off all but one of my bite scars. Only the scar on my right hip was concealed, and I wondered at that. Were they trying to make me look strong to all the vampires attending, or were they trying to make me feel insecure and ugly? If it was the latter they wanted, they weren't going to get it. I would wear my hair up to clearly showcase the scar on my neck, and I was considering asking Alice for help with a last second alteration the gown itself. Out of the corner of my eye, I aw Alice go very still. Her back was turned to me⏤she'd been conversing with Kate and Carmen⏤but as soon as her posture relaxed a little, she nodded once and gave me a subtle thumbs up with her hands down by her slim hips. I smiled widely and Athenadora noticed.

"There's the look of a happy bride-to-be," she said. "Are you excited, piccola?"

"Yes," I answered brightly. Just a little touch of rebellion was enough to excite anyone, and I chose to ignore the nerves that came with the excitement. Aro had his strings around me, but I'd show him he'd never make a puppet of me.

The following day, on the day of the rehearsal, they put me in a lightweight, long-sleeved, knee-length white cotton dress that covered every bite scar but the one on my neck. The scar on my left shoulder also peeked out slightly from underneath the neckline, but my hair had been left down to cover both scars. That confirmed my suspicions about the wedding gown. They were keeping me covered and comfortable so I would be hyperaware of all that the wedding gown exposed during the real ceremony. They might be happy to host the wedding, but they were still trying to exert their dominance over me by playing on my insecurities. Little did they know that, thanks to my mate, I was no longer uncomfortable with my body at all, and I was as proud of my scars as I was of Jasper's. We were warriors, and we'd hold our ground.

On that same day, right after rehearsal let out, some of the vampire guests started arriving. My family was allowed to greet and mingle with them, but I was kept out of sight. Whenever I'd get anywhere near a room with unknown vampires in it, a Volterran vampire would snatch me away. Some said it was for my safety, some said they needed my opinion on something to do with the wedding. I didn't buy either excuse. Any vampire invited knew I was human and off-limits. By law, every human residing in Volterra was off-limits. Unless the place was swarming with newborns, that wasn't an issue. As for the wedding details, I was under no delusions; my opinion counted for absolutely nothing. This was just another attempt to rattle me. Seeing all the gathered vampires at once would be much more overwhelming and intimidating. Perhaps they'd decided to go for the gold and see if they could actually get a stumble or a scream out of me. I tried to play dumb and not let their exploits worry me, but Jasper was quickly losing his patience with their game playing.

"They're playing with fire now," he growled when we found some alone time in Didyme's secluded garden. Everyone else tended to avoid the area, even when seeking privacy themselves. Jasper wasn't the only one who could feel the sadness and loneliness that saturated the air in the garden. Marcus kept the garden beautiful, but his pain seemed to be ingrained in every stone and petal. Anyone could feel it. "They're trying to intimidate and humiliate you at every turn," Jasper continued. I grabbed him and kissed him to cut off his little rant before he let the Major loose again.

"And all that effort is going to blow up in their faces," I said confidently, smiling inwardly at our role reversal. "You're right, they are playing with fire. I'm the fire. I know I have to mind what Eleazar said and not challenge Aro too much, but I've been making my own plans in my safe and silent mind, and Alice has been avoiding Aro like the plague. Hasn't she told you? You said your mind is safe for different reasons, even though you've surely burned off my blood by now." Jasper shook his head no. I smiled and leaned in so my lips grazed his ear, murmuring as softly as possible, "I'm making some last second wardrobe alterations with Alice's help, and I'll need your help for my other idea." Through my peripheral vision, I saw Jasper's eyebrow lift in question, and I proceeded to tell him his part in my little game.

"Maria's here, you know," Jasper told me as we made our way back inside. He was still projecting pride and wicked humor from what I'd instructed him to do. His smile only fell slightly when he felt my shock at his words. He shook his head. "She's changed a lot. She has a small coven now, just one other female, Alanna, and a male, Jude. None of them are mated. Maria just found in them what she needed to put all the violence and hatred behind her. Jude's gift is somewhat like mine, but limited. He can't feel what others are feeling, but he's naturally observant in that manner, and he can only project peace, forgiveness, and love, and he can ease bloodlust. Alanna's gift is the same as Maggie's."

"Maggie?"

"Some longtime friends of Carlisle's from Ireland are also here. There are also three in their coven: Siobhan, who denies her gift to will certain things to happen, her mate Liam, and their beloved little Maggie. Liam has no gift, but Maggie is a walking lie detector. Technically, I can use my gift for lie detection too, but not as consistently and accurately. Maggie can always sense when someone is speaking the truth or telling even a partial lie. Her gift is infallible. Alanna's is the same. Though I can't know for sure if the mechanics of their gifts are the same without asking Eleazar, from what Alanna, Maria, and Jude tell me, the result is just the same."

"I can see how that would help Maria turn her life around," I said, trying to push back the part of myself that still wanted to hate Maria for what she'd put Jasper, Peter, and Char through. She's the reason he's holding your hand today, I told myself. She's the reason you have your true mate beside you, and a strong mate too. "Either of those gifts are invaluable," I continued aloud. "Combine them and you've got the recipe for world peace." Jasper laughed. He also gave my hand an understanding squeeze, surely having guessed my thoughts based on my emotions.

"Jude's gift does have one more difference from mine which I admittedly envy," Jasper continued. "Like me, he can subtly change the emotional climate of an area with his presence alone, even without projecting, but his gift sticks and builds over time. Whether he projects his gift or just stays in close proximity to someone, over time his influence on a given target builds exponentially, even if he's not in constant contact with them. Frequently visiting the same people would eventually produce the same results."

"So the longer he stayed with Maria, the more he changed her," I concluded.

"Not just her," Peter chimed in. He and Char were waiting for us by our bedroom door. "That man single-handedly dismantled Maria's entire army without even consciously tryin'. Though vampire violence has gone down a lot since we were newborns, that old war is still technically bein' fought on a much smaller scale even now. Maria's just given it up. The peace-bringer slowly tamed Maria and her small army after she changed him eighteen years ago, and they all freely went their separate ways, avoidin' the more violent territories altogether. After that, it was just Maria and Jude for a few years 'til they happened across Alanna six years ago, completin' the coven of contentment." Peter smirked and Charlotte giggled.

Jasper nudged me, and I was surprised to see him giving me an almost apologetic look. "Judging from the emotions gushing out of these two, we're being kidnapped, and I don't mean together." I was confused for a moment, then the meaning behind his words registered and I groaned. Turning back to the grinning couple, I glared.

"Stag and hen parties?" I grumbled, "Really?"

"It's the one thing the Volturi are allowin' without involvin' themselves personally," Peter said in a singsong voice. That flipped a switch. I stopped glaring and grinned.

"Well, they did set a couple restrictions," Char admitted, stepping on Peter's foot. "Only vampire friends and relatives you already know can attend your party, Bella."

"And while we aren't required to have a Guard present," Peter quickly interjected, locking his eyes on mine, "I think Jane would like to come to your party."

"A couple weeks ago, I would've agreed," I started to argue, but Peter kept staring me down. He was trying to tell me something, but we could be overheard by anyone here. "She seemed…" I continued haltingly, grasping for a little more direction. "When we got here, she seemed…"

"Uncomfortable," Peter supplied. "Yeah, she's not much of a fuss 'n' feathers girl. She's like you that way. A break from playin' happy hostess is prob'ly just what she needs." Still holding my gaze, Peter silently tapped his wristband and raised his hand in a 'C' shape. My eyes cooled a little and I nodded. Jane hadn't tasted my blood, but she'd grown to care for me on her own, and now that I thought about it, she'd probably been punished to some degree for giving me Edward's wristband. She'd gone out on a limb for me, and I had yet to do anything particularly special for her. Unlike the other brainwashed Guards, she had a real reason to be upset with me. Jasper had said I was her Peter, a flicker of light in a world of darkness. If I wanted to see that lighter side of Jane again, I had to be the light.

"Good point," I conceded. "C'mon, Char, let's see if we can find her before the other girls come drag us away."

We found Jane alone in the west wing library. She initially hesitated to accept my invitation, but with Char's help I eventually talked her into coming along. When I grabbed her small hand and tugged her along, letting Char lead us to where the other girls were waiting, I was rewarded with one of Jane's exceedingly rare small smiles. She really had been waiting for me to reciprocate.

I was immensely surprised when Char led us to a small club right there in Volterra. The castle and the city were grand and beautiful, but still distinctly old-world with relatively inconspicuous modern updates. There was a flat-screen television in the pub, some nice stereo systems in the little boutiques, but some of the local humans had never even seen a motion-sensing sink or towel dispenser. A discreet, unmarked staircase in an alley between the pub and the bakery went deep under the cobblestone streets and led to a large underground club with padded hardwood flooring and stone walls. There was a small bar manned by a vampire wearing brown contacts and a small DJ booth with massive speakers. There were only five stools at the bar. Other than that, the place was all dance floor. Upon closer inspection, I noticed the small bar had very short menu: B-Wine, red wine, white wine, beer, and water. No human food. I cringed and whispered to Jane, "Let me guess. You can't feed on locals, but you can seduce them into bed if you bring them here first and get them drunk enough that they won't remember how cold you were, or why they're a little bruised the next day?" Jane nodded. "B-Wine, if ordered by a vampire, is blood with blue food-coloring added to make it look like red wine, isn't it?" Jane nodded again.

"If a human orders it, they're served a mulled red wine the bartender calls bar-blend wine, or B-Wine," Jane finally spoke. "Though Amberto isn't part of the Guard, he still works for us and knows all about you. He'll give you blood if you want it. We even keep a small stock of animal blood now. You can choose."

"No, no," Alice said, coming over with a wine glass in her hand. "The bride-to-be gets a real bar blend: mulled wine with a splash of human blood that has notes of orange zest and clove to it. You'll love it." She handed me the glass and I tasted it without hesitation. She was right. It was delicious. I caught Amberto's gaze and raised my glass to him with a nod of approval. He nodded his thanks and looked away, going about his business. I drank a little more before Alice reminded me to pace myself. "No more than two of those tonight," she said sternly. "I know it's the first wine you've had, and all you'll ever have, but we just want you buzzed, not drunk, and you absolutely cannot have a hangover tomorrow. Drink responsibly."

I couldn't help it. I laughed loud and long, doubling over and nearly spilling my drink. The irony was just too much. Charm my way into a large family of vampires? Okay. Lose my virginity to one? Live and let live. Befriend a rowdy pack of shape-shifters that think of themselves as werewolves? Caused a little friction, but whatever. Get married at eighteen in front of a hundred vampires I've never met? Happening whether I like it or not. Have more than two alcoholic drinks while they're still compatible with my body? Absolutely not acceptable.

Alice gave Jane a long look before shrugging her tiny shoulders and blurting out, "If you get drunk, you're going to forget yourself and punch Alec in the face when we return to the castle and he scolds Jane for coming with you. He's going to call her a fool for 'letting the chew toy bait her again,' and you're going to get angry and defend her either way, but if you attack him physically it's going to escalate into a fight involving Jasper, Peter, and Char, too."

I gaped at Alice. Why would she say that right in front of Jane? For one thing, there was surely a way to get Jane back without Alec's notice, especially if Alice already had a vision of that potential future. Secondly, why did Jane need to hear that at all? It was then that Jane shocked me still more by giggling and grinning at me.

"You kept quiet when Demetri publicly insulted you to your face," Jane laughed, "but you'd brawl with my brother for chastising me?"

Keep up, Bella, I thought to myself, realizing immediately that Alice was playing the same game as Peter. There was probably no vision of Alec at all. They were trying to push me and Jane closer together. I wondered why, but I quickly shrugged my speculative feelings off, deciding to put my full trust in Alice and Peter and just go with the flow. For whatever reason, I apparently needed to forge and maintain a friendship with Jane. I'd worry about the why of it later.

"I can't help it," I blurted out, thinking fast. "I know you're hundreds of years old and an elite member of the Volturi Guard, but you still look only thirteen or fourteen to me, and I've already told my family I worry about whether your gift makes it difficult for you to make friends. I'm a shield by nature. I just feel protective of you." I was improvising. I was saying whatever words came to my mind, but it didn't take me long to realize my words were truly coming from my heart. I did feel protective of Jane. I had from the beginning, without ever understanding why. Once again, I decided the why of it wasn't important. It was what I felt. It was instinctual, as instinctual as a lioness guarding her cubs. Acting on instinct again, I took another gulp of my drink, grabbed Jane's hand again, and pulled her out onto the dance floor. "Michael Jackson, Thriller," I called to whoever would listen. All the women laughed, and even Amberto cracked a wry smile, but someone did go turn on the song I requested. I remembered the choreography from the music video, and I'd become a much better dancer since being bitten, so I began showing Jane the steps. She looked flabbergasted and embarrassed at first, but Kate and Alice flashed over and joined in the dance, then Rose joined in and Jane started moving. Soon Char, Esme, Tanya, Irina, and Carmen all joined us, laughing the whole time as we danced in sync to the fantastically satirical song, corny choreography and all.

"Jane, wait," I called when we all returned to the castle a few hours later and started parting ways. Alec was nowhere in sight. Jane, already halfway down the opposite hallway, quickly doubled back to stand before me, looking around to make sure her twin wasn't coming. I pulled my favorite moonstone ring off my index finger and slid it onto hers. It was a little loose on her smaller finger, but not enough to fall right off. "I'm not one to wear a ton of rings, and as of tomorrow I'll be wearing my engagement ring, my Whitlock ring, and my wedding band, but this ring is special to me. If I'm not going to wear it, I want it on someone's hand… You know, the moonstone is said to bring luck, enhance intuition, and guide you toward love and happiness, as the moon itself is a guiding light in the night. I found my happiness. Maybe this will help you find yours." Once again, Jane looked stunned, and she seemed to be at a loss for words. "Besides, it's the only white you can wear to my wedding tomorrow," I added, hoping humor would help her regain her senses.

Jane sprang forward and hugged me a little too tightly, then she turned and bolted down the hall without a word.

"Well played, Bella," Alice approved when I entered my room to find her waiting inside with Irwin, Peter, and Jasper. "She cares as much for you as is possible now, without completely breaking Chelsea's hold on her."

"Well played to you too," I said. I started walking around the four vampires seated on the foot of my bed, but Irwin stood and stopped me.

"I can't stay long," he said, "but I had to come thank you in person." It took me a moment to realize what he was talking about. Looking into his golden eyes, I saw a mixture of gratitude and deep sadness that instantly made me think of Eleazar. Not wanting to risk saying the words aloud, I tapped the bite scars on my wrist. Irwin nodded and pulled me into a gentle hug. "I am bound to my mate and to you now," he whispered. "Ange parmi les démons, vos désirs sont des ordes." I had no idea what he said, but somewhere in those words I sensed a fervent promise. Saying no more, he released me, gave Alice a quick kiss, and teleported away.

"What did he just say?" I asked no one in particular.

"Angel among devils, your wish is my command," Alice translated, standing up and hugging me herself. "My true mate is free now. Thanks, sis."

"Anytime," I mumbled, exhausted. Stepping around Alice, I resumed my original course and walked up to the head of the bed, flinging myself across the numerous pillows there. An involuntary groan escaped my lips on contact. "Now what was all that about with Jane?" I asked, the pillows muffling my voice. "Why didn't either of you warn me in advance?" I asked, addressing Peter and Alice while Jasper crawled up the bed and pulled me into his arms. I could smell evidence of a hunt on him without even looking into his eyes. I snuggled into his cool, hard chest. "If that relationship had to urgently be mended, why not give me a note, or a text or something?"

"That's what we're here to explain, sweet pea," Peter said.

"It's actually very complicated," Alice commented.

"Y'see, when I met Jude earlier, I saw an image of him and Jane together," Peter began. "They're mates. I'm not Marcus, but let's just say what I saw made that much pretty damn clear."

"But that's great!" I said, excited for Jane, but also confused.

"Not now it isn't, Bella," Alice said grimly. "As soon as Peter decided to introduce the two of them, it triggered a series of my own visions, and they ended terribly." Jasper's hold on me tightened and he nuzzled my hair soothingly. "We're already treading on thin ice with Aro," Alice continued. "I saw Demetri telling Aro that he could tell you'd given Eleazar your blood. Aro became very angry, but he's kept that to himself thus far, not approaching any of us about it, but he will lash out if we free anyone else from Chelsea or the memory modifier. He won't find out about Irwin for a while yet, but Jane's a different story. If Jane and Jude meet now, Chelsea's hold on Jane will immediately break, just like her hold on Irwin did when he met me. She'll still be at the mercy of the memory modifier, but losing Jane's full loyalty will be final straw that makes Aro snap. I stopped Peter, but then I had a vision of them meeting anyway while we were away at our parties."

"So we had to get her to come with us," I said, understanding.

"The other option was invitin' Jude to our stag party," Peter commented.

"But I saw that he would turn down the invitation," Alice interjected, "choosing to stay with Maria and Alanna instead."

"It was still important for you to befriend Jane," Peter said. "My knower told me so, but that didn't feel nearly as urgent. I'd say what I saw is a good month off yet, give or take a week."

"But my visions told me if we didn't act tonight, it would be disastrous for all of us," Alice said. "On the one hand, it's cruel, and we feel terrible keeping mates apart, especially when one so desperately needs the other, but the timing just isn't right."

"He could help her like he helped Maria…" I murmured sadly.

"The timin' isn't right," Peter parroted. "That's the way it is with some mates, sweet pea. If you were alive back when the Major met Alice, and if he somehow met you instead, he might've drained ya without recognizin' you as his, or if he did feel a pull to ya, he wouldn't've accepted the fact that his mate was a human. He wasn't in the right frame of mind back then. I know it's different, but it's the best example I can give ya. Do ya think I don't wish my brother could've found his true mate sooner? Things happened when and how they needed to happen."

"Maybe you did a little too well tonight," Alice said sympathetically, walking over and squeezing my hand. "I could see it in your eyes. You really do care about her and you want her to be happy. I don't need Jasper to tell me it hurts you to hurt her, even without her knowledge of it, but you have to keep this one thing from her now. You don't want to know how many people will be hurt or killed if you don't." I just nodded, torn and not knowing what to say. I buried my face in Jasper's chest, guilt and shame gnawing at me. Alice released my hand, and I barely heard her feather-light footsteps as she left the room. I expected Peter to follow her out, but when I felt his weight shift on the bed, it increased as he moved closer. I looked up to see him sitting right beside me. He grabbed the notepad off the nightstand and wrote a short note before tearing off the page and handing it to me. He squeezed my shoulder and smiled fondly at me, though I could see hints of sadness and anger I didn't understand in his eyes, then he quickly stood and followed Alice out of the room, closing the door softly behind him.

I looked at the paper and read what Peter wrote. The four little words shook me to my core: Jane saves your life. I heard Jasper gasp quietly as he read the note too, then he pulled a lighter out of his pocket. Burn after reading, ha ha… but this was no cliché spy movie. This wasn't a joke. I handed him the paper and he walked into our bathroom, dropping the note in the sink and setting it alight. As soon as it was naught but ash, he turned on the faucet and washed the ashes down the drain. He quickly rejoined me in bed, trying to combat the guilt, shame, and fear he could surely feel pouring off me. I was involved in a conspiracy to keep Jane's mate from her, but she was going to save my newborn immortal life. A moonstone ring was hardly enough to pay off my debt to her.

A sudden thought made my heart leap in fear and panic. Jasper reacted immediately, rolling us over so he was hovering over me on his hands and knees, blocking me from anything in the room that might have frightened me, but he didn't growl or tense as if to spring. His senses were sharper than mine and he could sense no approaching threat; the posturing was merely an instinct to make me feel safer, like swaddling a baby. He knew that whatever had caused my shift in emotions was internal. His eyes bored into mine, trying to find his foe inside me. I wasn't in physical danger, but he was still compelled to fight off whatever was scaring his mate.

"Shh," I also acted on instinct, running my fingers through his hair and leaning up to give him a quick kiss, letting him know I was okay. "I was just having second thoughts about the special plans I made with you and Alice for tomorrow," I whispered, my voice almost completely inaudible to my own ears. "If it's true that Aro is already at his breaking point, maybe we shouldn't push it."

Jasper seemed to consider my words carefully, remaining silent for almost a full minute, but then he shook his head. "Yes, it'll fan the flame a bit, but what we're doing is making a statement that needs to be made, whatever the repercussions. Alice would've said something if she thought it was a bad idea, and what you and I do during the ceremony will lower the risk of the mates meeting too soon, since it will prevent the reception and all the dancing and mingling from happening." I flinched at that reminder of what we were doing to Jane and Jude, but I nodded. I understood why it had to be done, but I'd never like it, and if anything happened to one of them before they could meet, I'd never be able to forgive myself for it.

Jasper growled in frustration when he felt that new slew of emotions, and his lips crashed down on mine, desperate and demanding. He was very good at kissing me senseless, doing incredible things with his lips, tongue, and teeth until I was gasping for breath and bereft of any thoughts apart from the need to get his clothes off. We were obviously sharing that thought, because less than ten seconds later we were both completely bare, surrounded by shreds of fabric that once resembled clothing. We'd pretend this was the night of our wedding, not the night before.

The day had come: May first, Beltane. I was getting married and I would finally be changed into a full vampire, a true Child of Saturn. My Maid of Honor, Alice, and my bridesmaids, Char, Rose, and Kate, shooed all the other women out of my room to take their seats. We had fifteen minutes left before the ceremony began, and only Jasper, Peter, and my bridal party knew what Alice and I were planning to do with those seconds flying by. As soon as the door was closed, Char, Rose, and Kate, dressed in blood-red silk gowns, stood with their backs pressed against the old wood and iron, barricading the entrance with their stone bodies. Alice bolted into the bathroom and returned seconds later with the sewing kit from the linen cabinet, then she hitched up the floor-length skirt of her own gown and knelt by my right side. Pulling out the small pair of scissors, a needle, and ivory white thread, she went to work. While I held as still as possible, she pinched the white fabric of my gown between her delicate fingers and cut a hole in the material over the bite scar on my right hip. She cut the rough hole into a crescent moon shape, further highlighting the two small crescents that made up the scar. Taking up the needle and thread, Alice expertly hemmed the frayed edges of the material in less than three minutes. While Alice returned the sewing kit to the bathroom, I walked over to the mirror and admired her masterful work. The soft curve of the hole flowed with the mermaid shape of the dress and looked like it had always been there, and my once hidden scar was on full display at the widest part of the crescent, right at its center. I beamed at Alice and hugged her when she came back into the room.

"It's perfect, Alice!" I gushed, "Thank you!"

"Now we just need a few more finishing touches," Kate said, stepping away from the door and walking over to my bed. To my tremendous surprise, she reached underneath the bed and pulled out a pair of simple, classy blue pumps. My balance had improved enough that walking in heels was no longer a problem. I could even run in them without falling. "Something borrowed and blue," Kate said. "Luckily, you and Carmen wear the same shoe size. These are hers."

"The Whitlock ring, the engagement ring, and the gown are all new, so that's thoroughly covered," Char said while Kate helped me slip on the comfortable, well-worn shoes.

"Though all of our crests have broken at least once or twice over the years, Edward's wristband is around sixty years old," Rose chimed in. "That will be your something old." Remembering the wristband, I walked over to the nightstand by my side of the bed and pulled it out of the top drawer, pulling it onto my right arm.

"And though the black leather clashes horribly with the overall look, this way you're also wearing some representation of each branch of our family," Alice said. The thought of representing the Cullens, Whitlocks, and Denalis all at once made me smile, but my smile fell at the reminder that Bella Swan no longer existed. We'd successfully staged my death, and any normal humans who knew me had said their goodbyes at my funeral a few days ago, but this was the real thing. My human life was truly about to end. It was over... I looked around and saw four beautiful faces wearing expressions that surely mirrored my own. They knew where my mind had wandered, and they all silently mourned for this part of me too, for human Bella.

Alice's eyes glazed over for a moment and she said, "It's time." For some reason, those two little words sent my mind spinning out of control, leaving my body to run on autopilot. I was only vaguely aware of Char leading the way out the door. Kate and Rose followed her. Alice took my hand and tugged me along. She could surely tell I'd completely checked out, but she made no effort to snap me out of it. While Alice dragged me along, I looked at my rings and considered their symbolism with new eyes. I still had eternity ahead of me, but within eternity there were still endings and beginnings. The rings suddenly seemed two-dimensional to me, an illusionary trick like the Penrose Stairs. I shook my head. My human mind was ill-equipped to handle this paradox, still clinging to logic. A little over a year ago, I'd stumbled into a world that defied all logic. Time went on forever and blood-drinking beings sparkled like diamonds in the sun. Children morphed into giant animals. The lovely floral scent in the air could be from a nearby garden where grief lingered in the air like fog, or it could be the scent of the person next to you. According to vampires, I was a Saturno, but if humans unaware of vampires somehow saw evidence of my power, wouldn't they call me a witch? When Alice was human, they called her crazy and locked her in an asylum, but today people aware of her gift would call her a psychic and seek her out for guidance. Some beings lived for seconds, others for years, and others for millennia on end, but even the latter could die. By definition, I was about to die, and yet I would live on. I was on the brink of eternity, but what did eternity really mean?

"You choose what it means," Alice suddenly spoke urgently in my ear. She shook me when I didn't respond. "You choose what it means!" She nearly shouted, shaking me harder, finally bringing me out of my thoughts and back to the present.

"Choose what what means?" I said stupidly, blinking rapidly and trying to focus. I felt so disoriented.

"Whatever you were thinking about," Alice responded as if my incoherent question made perfect sense. "The answer is, there is no answer. There never was."

"There never… What?" I asked, shaking my head, trying to ground myself again.

"We expected this to happen after the van crash, or when Edward brought you to our place for the first time." Alice spoke so quickly that it took all my focus to catch every word. "It started happening when Eleazar declared you were a Saturno, but Laurent's attack snapped you out of it, and then you just accepted it like you've accepted everything else." I heard music start and the first of my bridesmaids in line, Char, walked through a pair of doors to our right and started walking down the isle inside. "Humans need boundaries and definitions and labels," Alice continued rapidly but quietly. "Their minds can't function properly without them, as you just experienced. Humans call things they can explain logical, and they call things they can't explain paranormal, imaginary, or non-existent, but they've got it entirely wrong. Normality is non-existent. You seemed to accept that fact from the start. You were different. You took everything in stride until now." Kate walked through the doors. "We expected this to happen sooner, and we would have taken more time to talk you through it then, but there's no time for it now. You'll have to settle for the abridged version: Throw the dictionary out the window. Not everything can be defined, and what can be defined is subjective. Every so-called rule or law can be bent, if not broken, including some laws of nature." Rose walked through the doors. "It's true that with great power comes great responsibility. There are very few boundaries in our world, but we self-impose boundaries because to not do so would lead to chaos and destruction. You'll learn more in time, but to truly enter this world with peace of mind, you must answer this one question: Do you have a reason to live forever?" Alice turned and walked through the doors. I started to shake.

No wonder Edward used to watch me like I might spontaneously combust at any second. No wonder my silent mind drove him crazy. He'd been waiting for this to happen, but I'd been so blinded by love that I didn't even notice the world as I'd known it for seventeen years turning upside-down and inside-out. Wait a minute… I stepped forward and stood in the doorway, turning to look down the isle. I locked eyes with Jasper and the world around me blurred and dissolved away. I heard several gasps at my entrance, and I could hear several low conversations break out around me, but I had tunnel vision. I only saw Jasper, and the look in his eyes told me he only saw me. Did I have a reason to live forever?

"I do."

Booming laughter filled the room and broke my concentration. I could see everyone and everything around me again. Hundreds of red eyes and a handful of gold eyes were staring at me. The number of red eyes should have alarmed me, but most of them were sparkling with humor. Looking back at Jasper, I saw he had his hand clamped over his mouth, but he was still shaking with silent laughter. Everyone was laughing… well, almost everyone.

"We'll get to that part, cara mia, but first you must walk down the aisle," Aro called to me from the altar. He was conducting the ceremony, of course. He was smiling, but after spending so much time around him, I could recognize the simmering anger in his eyes even from such a distance. "Do you still wish to walk unaccompanied?" Aro asked, his polite tone wavering ever so slightly, enough that several pairs of eyes snapped back in his direction. Though Carlisle and Eleazar had both offered to walk me down the isle, I'd declined their offers to honor my human father. If he couldn't walk me down the isle, no one would. Looking Aro dead in the eye, I smiled back.

"I do," I said again, this time deliberately. Several of the vampires around me laughed again. Jasper stopped trying to smother his own laughter and laughed freely.

"Then get down here, already!" He called, grinning broadly. I grinned back, hitched up my gown a little, and ran down the aisle at my current top speed. More vampires laughed. Some of them applauded. Alice stepped forward to help me readjust my gown when I reached the altar. When I looked at her, she gave me a quick wink and nudged me toward Jasper. Puckish pixie knew that was going to happen. I took my mate's hands, still grinning like a fool and ignoring Aro entirely. While Aro began his sermon, Jasper and I had a quick, silent conversation. His shining gold eyes flickered down to the cut Alice made in the dress and he winked. 'Nice.' I shifted my right hand slightly and tapped his hand with the Whitlock ring. 'Copia, sed ipse.' Jasper caught my eyes again and briefly looked over his left shoulder. I followed his gaze and saw a beautiful Mexican woman with flowing dark hair and red eyes gazing back at me. Maria. She grinned and gave me a slow, deliberate onceover, her gaze pausing momentarily at each scar. When her eyes met mine again, she nodded in admiration and approval. I nodded in thanks before turning back to Jasper. Our part was coming up.

"Jasper Whitlock, do you take Isabella Swan as your wife and mate, now and forever?"

"I do," Jasper spoke loud and clear, and he shot out a tidal wave of pride that surely washed through the entire room. A light smattering of applause confirmed my assumption.

"Isabella Swan, do you take Jasper Whitlock as your husband and mate, now and forever?"

"Forever and beyond, I do," I declared confidently. Another brief round of applause rose as we exchanged rings.

"May Beltane bless your eternal love," Aro recited. "I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss to seal your pact."

I threw myself at Jasper, kissing him passionately. The crowd whooped, whistled, and applauded. Get it out now, folks. Thank you for coming. We're sorry, but the reception and changing ceremony have been canceled. Jasper squeezed my hand. 'Are you sure?' I squeezed his hand back with all my might and started tilting my head back and to the side, baring my neck to him. 'Absolutely.' I looked up just in time to see a flash of recognition in Aro's eyes, but before he or anyone else could react, Jasper's lips moved from my mouth to my neck, and he bit down hard.


	24. Caged Bird

♀︎(Bella's POV)

"Sweet dreams are made of this. Who am I to disagree? Traveled the world and the seven seas. Everybody's looking for something. Some of them want to use you, some of them want to get used by you, some of them want to abuse you, some of them want to be abused…" I would never win any Grammys with my voice, but changing into a vampire made me a decent singer, and my blood sang to no one. I had no more blood to speak of. Stepping out of the shower, I quickly dried off and dressed for the day, pulling on an old pair of jeans and a simple plaid button-down. Human or vampire, I was still Bella. Isabella Marie Swan Whitlock, newlywed newborn vampire and a Child of Saturn. Since I had amassed so much venom from numerous bites I'd received while still human, my true change had only taken about thirty-four hours, the shortest changing time in vampire history. Gradually changing as a human pretty much allowed me to skip the notorious newborn stage altogether. From day one, I had impeccable control of my thirst, and I only took a couple days to adjust to the spike in speed and strength. My shielding and amplifying gifts had grown significantly stronger too, but I tried not to flaunt that. Seeing my power made Aro much too happy, and I was by no means eager to please him.

"Just a week or two," he'd told us after I awoke from my change. "Stay in Volterra just a week or two longer, so we can be certain she's ready be reintegrated into the human world." Ha. I'd been mingling with the human employees in the castle for five weeks. I'd been allowed out into the city at night a couple times. I had yet to even come close to biting a human. My eyes were already pure gold. Still, every time we broached the issue, Aro, Caius, or one or more members of the Guard had a new excuse to keep me. Technically, only I alone was forced to stay. Peter and Char took off for one week to visit Maria and her new coven. Some of the Cullens and Denalis would leave for a day or two, but they'd never stay away long. Jasper never left me. We would wander the castle or city separately from time to time, but more often than not, we remained within earshot of each other, so when I heard someone whistling the same song I was just singing outside my window, I assumed it was him. Walking over to the window, I could tell that I was way off the mark in that assumption. For one thing, there was no one in sight. Secondly, his scent wasn't outside. Whoever was just out there smelled like fresh mint and watermelon… no one in Volterra, human or vampire, smelled like fresh mint and watermelon. Of that much I was certain because, unlike most vampires, I learned to completely ignore my thirst and focus on the intricacies of human scents a little over a week after my change.

There it was again! The whistle was softer, and somewhere off to the left, but it was the same song. "Jasper?" I called. No answer. The whistle sounded again, the source of it moving farther away. Though it might not have been my brightest idea, I followed the sound. I leapt out of the window and started walking through the long east wing courtyard, following the sound and the unfamiliar scent. The scent was strangely faint. I knew it was recent, but the trail smelled hours old, almost like the stranger was passing through the area without actually touching the ground… That's when I saw it: There on the ground was a long strand of curly, flaming red hair. Victoria was gone, but her head had been taken by, "Annabeth?" I whispered that time. I wasn't sure how many Volterrans knew the full story about how the battle against Victoria, Tristan, Annabeth, and their six newborns had gone. Knowing Edward was killed for his involvement kept them from asking any questions about it. Aro knew the whole story. He'd witnessed the battle through Edward's mind before having him executed, but I suspected he'd kept that story to himself. To him, the only thing worse than someone defying him was news of such a deliberate act of rebellion going public. As it was, he was still fuming over the stunts I'd pulled on my wedding and changing day, in a room packed with vampires from all over the world no less. He was still playing nice, rarely letting that fury show outwardly, but Jasper felt it, and I'd expected as much when I chose to publicly cross him.

The whistle sounded again. Was that a yes or a no? I picked up the strand of hair and continued following the sound, not paying attention to the faint scent anymore. This person clearly wasn't trying to hide from me. They wanted to be found. After a few more minutes of playing Marco Polo, I found myself walking down the long path to Didyme's garden, a place where only Marcus, Jasper, and I ever ventured. The stranger had been watching me. Could it really be the mysterious flyer? When I walked around the pillars surrounding the secluded private garden, I got my answer. There in the garden was a female vampire hovering a couple feet above the ground. "Annabeth." It wasn't a question that time. Neither I nor anyone else I'd spoken to had ever heard of another vampire capable of true flight. Annabeth appeared to share both my physical age and height, and she had long, pin-straight black hair that made her pale white skin and red eyes that much more striking in contrast. Those striking red eyes met my gold ones briefly, then her gaze flickered down to the hair in my hand and back again.

"And you're Bella, right?" She asked softly, her voice a melodic contralto. I nodded. Annabeth finally landed. "Just so you know, I only kept her head for a few days," she said, obviously referring to Victoria. "I wanted to prolong her suffering a little, for killing my mate and tricking me into a fight with innocent people, but I've never been particularly sadistic, and I knew my Seamus wouldn't have wanted me to turn into the ruthless monster she'd become. From the start, I thought there was something off about her blaming and targeting a human for the death of her mate. If she wanted revenge, she should have gone after the vampires that actually did the killing. No offense, I know they're like family to you. It's not your fault James chose to hunt you despite the fact that a coven of seven claimed you as theirs. My intention was never to hurt you. I rarely hunt women as it is, and… well, she told me your shifter friends killed my mate."

"I know. The shifters and two of the three vampires there told me what happened," I said.

"What about the third one?" Annabeth inquired guiltily, "Were they killed?"

"Not in the fight," I answered bitterly, growling softly. Annabeth flinched. I shook my head. "Not your fault. Edward went because he could read minds. We had other plans. I had a powerful shield against most gifts, even as a human, and I could project it. Without me there, Edward was the only one capable of fighting Tristan, since he could keep his eyes closed. He… He was the one Victoria thought was my mate. He and I believed we were mates for a while too. It's a long story, but we weren't… Aro killed him." I had looked away, lost in my memories. When I looked back, Annabeth was frowning, seemingly lost in thought herself. After a moment, she rolled her eyes and nodded, as if something that had been puzzling her suddenly made perfect sense. For the first time, I glared at her accusingly and I opened my mouth to demand an explanation from her.

"You aren't the only one, you know," she cut me off before I could get a word out. I blinked. "The only Saturno," she clarified, her voice a breath above a whisper. "Your kind is certainly very near complete extinction, but I've met two others, Lysander and Jillian."

"Why are you telling me this?"

"Bella, you have to get out of here. I know where Lysander is now, and we can find Jillian. I'll take you to them, but you can't stay here. It's not safe." Annabeth's tone was urgent. Frighteningly so. She did know something, or at least she strongly suspected something.

"Annabeth, they won't let us go."

"Don't tell me you believe they're keeping you here with good intentions in mind," the flying vampire almost growled.

"How would you know either way? What do you know?"

"I only know what I've observed and what Lysander told me, but that's his story to tell, not mine. I also know Aro's reputation. Like you, I was changed at eighteen, but I'm closer to Carlisle Cullen's true age. Aro covets power, and if he can't have it, he eventually finds a reason to destroy it. You aren't safe here." I started to speak again, but Annabeth and I both stiffened when we heard distant footsteps turn down the path to the garden. Annabeth ran to me and rapidly whispered in my ear, "Be ready by tonight or tomorrow at the latest. I'll get some cars ready for all of you. When you're ready, sing something again. If you hear me whistle the same tune back, it's go time… and call me Annie." Before I could respond, Annabeth flew off. A minute later, Marcus walked around the pillars and stopped when he saw me standing in the garden.

"Sorry," I blurted. "I was looking for Jasper. I'm sure you've noticed he and I come here sometimes… I'll leave you alone." Marcus merely nodded, his usual mask of misery firmly in place. I ran off and took the first door I reached back inside the castle, ending up in the north wing, the Guard's Wing. Normally, that wouldn't be an issue. True, I tried to avoid the Guard as much as possible⏤only Jane and I had formed an odd kind of friendship⏤but now that I was a powerful newborn Saturno, the rest of the Guard avoided me as well unless ordered otherwise. I could usually pass without incident, but when I passed Chelsea's door, it was open and Aro was inside.

"Ah, Bella, what a wonderful surprise!" He called in that sickeningly cheery voice that was his signature. "Please, do come in."

"I don't want to interrupt anything," I bit out, forcing myself to smile back. "You're clearly tending to some business with Chelsea."

"We just finished," Aro said brightly, "and it was hardly business. Chelsea just had some news she was eager to share with me. She was just about to go rejoin Marcus."

"Marcus?" That puzzled me. "I was just with him. I mean, I just saw him. He's in Didyme's garden. He looked like he wanted some time alone." Aro frowned.

"Ah, yes. I'm so glad he's moving on at last, but it will still be difficult for him to let go. All the more reason for you to go to him, dear," he said to Chelsea. He took her hand and kissed it briefly as he stood. She rose with him. "You're just what my brother needs. I do so look forward to seeing him happy again." Chelsea beamed at Aro as if he'd just given her an Oscar, an Emmy, and an Olympic gold medal, then she turned and strode out of her own room, paying me no attention whatsoever. Aro beckoned me forward again. Refusal was apparently not an option. I walked into the room, but neither of us sat down.

"So, what's the good news?" I was used to this game. He would lure me in somehow, we'd politely chitchat about some random topic, and then when I appeared relaxed enough, he'd go for what he really wanted. Will you join the Guard? Will you stay in Volterra? Will you help us as an unofficial member of the Guard? We have a problem we need to tend to and we could really use your gifts… I always declined. That's when I'd see one of those brief breaks in his cheery façade, and I'd change the subject and resume the polite chitchat until he reined his fury in again and either dismissed me or excused himself.

"Oh, it's wonderful news!" He corrected. It was only then that I realized his phony grin had been replaced by a genuine smile. This wasn't how the game was supposed to go… "Though no one can ever truly replace his dear Didyme, it seems Caius and I finally succeeded in convincing our brother that taking a new wife might at least lift some of the gloom of loneliness." Now I understood that odd exchange, and for some reason I was instantly infuriated. I fought the emotion back with all my might and tried to keep my smile in place. I failed and my smile faded, but I did suppress the urge to growl and I kept my face expressionless.

"Marcus is going to marry Chelsea?" I asked flatly. Aro's smile only faltered slightly.

"Of all the options here, she is his best match, their very gifts working harmoniously," he said nonchalantly. Damn, I was still a newborn. I lost control of my anger and snapped.

"Oh, is that how it works around here?" I asked bitingly, "Is Sulpicia your true mate, or did you take her as your wife because you can read thoughts and memories and she can alter them?" Okay, really shouldn't have said that aloud. Aro's smile widened again. This was definitely not one of our usual games. Where was Jasper?

"Your mate has certainly changed you," Aro said, guessing what direction my thoughts had taken despite his inability to read my mind. "You are not the timid, awkward, submissive girl you were with Edward. Bold, Isabella, very bold." Switching from Bella to Isabella was never a good sign, but Aro's smile still held. He looked… smug, even as he shook his head as if he were scolding a misbehaving child. "Bold, and a good guess, but incorrect." His smile widened and I caught an odd glint in his dark red eyes as he looked down at me… No, it couldn't be. "Sulpicia is my mate, and unfortunately not gifted at all," Aro continued, "but she's plenty beautiful and a skilled fighter. No, no, cara mia. I am the one who can alter memories." While I gaped in shock and horror, Aro held up his hands in mock surrender. "You caught me. I had a feeling you'd guessed the truth back in April, but you didn't trust those initial instincts and you kept second-guessing yourself. I suppose you just couldn't bring yourself to accept what I am."

"You're a Saturno? Does anyone else know?"

"Bella, I'm sure you can understand why my second gift must be kept secret, but yes. My brothers and a few of our most trusted Guards know what I am. I'm the oldest Saturno alive."

"Why?" I gasped. I had been unintentionally holding my breath. "Why would you hunt down and execute your own kind? You endangered your own species. Why?"

"Because I believed their existence posed a threat to our secrecy, and that misuse of their great power would lead to utter chaos, just as Eleazar told you. Neither of my gifts are visible, and they're used strictly for the good of our kind, to keep order. Of course, I deeply regret my actions now. I tried to talk some of the Saturnos we found into joining us, so their power would never be a threat, but they always refused, starting with Piers, the man Eleazar told you about. I had to execute them, dear Bella. You're so young; you can't understand what dangerous times we were living in then! The Romanians were building an army to bring us down and destroy the order we'd kept for ages, and werewolves and shape-shifters were killing vampires practically every day. Though they stood no chance against real vampires, humans hunted us, along with werewolves, witches, and every other kind of supernatural creature now widely deemed non-existent, and thank the gods for that! Humans have developed technologies capable of harming us now. No one is invincible anymore. No one is safe." No one is safe. I'm not safe here. I slowly shook my head and took a step back.

"No. I don't believe you."

"Cara mia, please. Don't you see why we've kept you here now? You and I may very well be the only Saturnos left. You're the only one like me. You're like the daughter I never had, but always wanted. I'm trying to atone for my terrible past mistakes by taking you under my wing and keeping you safe here with me." No one is safe. I'm not safe here.

"No! I don't believe you, and stop calling me that! I am not your dear, I am absolutely not your daughter, I'm not your anything! Your gifts don't work on me, and your tricks won't work on me either! This is bullshit! Cut the crap and tell me the real reason you killed all those other Saturnos! Was it because you were afraid of them, or because you wanted to be the only one, so you could feel more powerful?" Aro's warm, personable façade exploded into pieces before my eyes and I heard him grind his teeth in restrained rage.

"You will not speak to me in such a manner, Isabella!" Aro's growled, his tone deadly. "You will take back those insulting accusations this instant!"

"NO!" I growled back. "I bet you lied about the others knowing what you are too! After all the propaganda, no one would trust you if they knew, probably not even your favorite toy, Chelsea!"

Aro growled viciously and lunged, grabbing me by the throat and slamming me into the nearest wall, sending some of Chelsea's wall décor crashing to the ground.

"Right and wrong," Aro growled lowly. "Chelsea is the only one who knows. She'll never tell anyone, and neither will you."

"Going to kill me now?" I challenged, "Really? After all the time and effort you spent to get me?" Though Aro's grip on me was painful, and even though I could probably fight him off with my newborn strength, I fought the instinct to even struggle against his hold. He had Marcus, Caius, and the whole Guard brainwashed. If I harmed Aro at all, they'd kill me in an instant, and then they'd turn on Jasper and my family. He dropped me anyway, but he didn't step back. He towered over me standing so close, practically pinning me to the wall with his domineering presence alone.

"Of course not, Isabella," Aro said almost flippantly, but there was still a dark undercurrent there, and his expression could only be called sadistic. "Your gifts are too valuable, and through the ages I've learned how to acquire and keep what I want. Need I remind you of poor Edward?" I flinched and Aro's barbarous smile widened. "It's true that he went to see you in December. He arrived a few hours before Major Whitlock. He was devastated when he saw what he'd done, how broken you were. After your mate arrived, Edward came here begging for death. He said he knew his family had you again, and he assured us they would obey the law and turn you without him there, but he said he couldn't bear to face any of you again after all the pain and misery he'd caused. So, after reading his mind and noticing what the young fool had missed, I just adjusted a few memories here and there. Once he was convinced Major Whitlock would harm you, all I had to do was hand him off to Chelsea. She created a bond of respectful servitude toward us, and a bond of all-consuming obsession toward you. Six months later, here you are, and Edward died just as he wished."

I was torn between rage and devastation. Venom tears that would never fall filled my eyes. I blinked them back furiously. I refused to let this ruthless monster see how much he was hurting me.

"Hmm…" Aro feigned deep thought for a moment, still not moving away. There was more. How could there be more? Where had Jasper gone? I wanted to scream for him. I knew he was in the castle, so he would surely hear a loud scream, but I couldn't scream for him. That would be just as bad as breaking down and sobbing in front of Aro. I wouldn't give him the satisfaction, no matter what he said next. "How many others can I use to break you?" He almost purred, clearly enjoying himself. Sadistic bastard. "Jasper, Alice, Irwin, Carlisle, Esme, Peter, Charlotte, Emmett, Rosalie," I was shaking my head, but the list kept going, "Eleazar, Carmen, Kate, Irina, Tanya, and of course we can't forget your wolves. What if something happened to dear Jacob, or maybe young Seth?" The tears were trying to come back. I kept blinking them back. "What of the few clueless humans you care about? Your father, your pregnant mother, your stepfather… Angela Weber was your closest friend in school, was she not?" I couldn't quite stifle my gasp of horror. He'd go that far?! Finally meeting Aro's cold eyes again, I had no doubt he would. "Defy me and I will destroy everyone and everything you hold dear," he concluded, "until you are as broken and malleable as Marcus."

I felt like I'd been punched in the gut. No, I felt like a wrecking ball had crashed into my gut. "You killed Didyme."

Aro took one step back and shrugged dispassionately. "She'd convinced Marcus to leave with her, and he's too valuable. Chelsea can't break the bond of true mates as long as they both live, and Didyme had no gift and no skill in combat, so she was disposable. I couldn't let someone so worthless tear our family apart. Then there were the werewolves. Caius already begrudged their kind for killing his wife and children when he was human, and the foul creatures have always been our natural enemies, so convincing Marcus they'd killed his beloved was the perfect setup." With a final callous shrug, Aro finally turned away and headed for the door. I couldn't quite make my feet move yet.

"Decimation of full covens, near complete genocide of both werewolves and Saturnos," Aro murmured almost to himself as he passed through the doorway, but his words were clearly meant for me, "you can see where crossing me will get you." With that he walked out the door and started walking down the hall, at human pace for some reason. Fighting down the hysteria bubbling up inside me, I finally managed to push myself away from the wall, leaving Chelsea's room and shutting the door behind me.

"Oh, cara mia," Aro called from only about fifty feet away. I whipped around to face him, startled and only minutes from snapping. Still, I didn't miss the fact that he'd reverted to his favorite endearment for me. He was also using that deceptively pleasant tone of voice again. I was instantly wary. Sure enough, right when I thought he was done with me, he threw one more sucker punch. "I offered Tristan a position in the Guard once. He declined, but it was an acceptable loss. Alec's gift is similarly incapacitating. Tristan had a mate too, I remember. Her name was Amelia. After learning of you through Edward, I had her captured and torn apart, but not burned. Knowing Tristan wouldn't comply otherwise, I had her pieces hidden all over the country, and I told Tristan I'd give them back if he completed a little task for me. I told him to find and join Victoria, to help her make just a few newborns, and to wait for my call. That weekend you were all here, I called and told him to attack. It's too bad he died in the battle." Again, a dispassionate shrug. I was gaping at Aro, and I jumped slightly when he suddenly cackled loudly. "Come to think of it," Aro laughed, "since Tristan never did return, pieces of Amelia are still scattered all over the country." With that, Aro grinned at me, spun on his heel, and left the corridor at vampire speed.

I turned and ran the opposite direction at newborn vampire speed. I had no particular destination in mind, but when I caught a strong whiff of Jasper's scent, I followed the fresh trail back to our bedroom. He flung the door open before I could reach it, his expression was somewhere between pained and furious. He'd felt me coming. I barreled into his open arms and he yanked me inside our room and kicked the door shut. I don't know when I'd begun dry-sobbing, but I was sobbing loudly. The noise probably just seemed softer in the tall, wide corridors; it bounced off the walls and echoed in our room. Thankfully, all the surrounding rooms were assigned to members of our family. Jasper was going to question me, and I didn't feel like I could repeat what had just happened more than once. With any luck, everyone was in their room or on their way to ours, having heard me. If not, they'd have to pass the story along among themselves.

"Bella, what happened?" Jasper demanded, his voice a little deeper than usual and his southern accent more pronounced. Of course the Major was out. His mate was clearly terrified and at the very least emotionally hurt; Jasper's darker alter ego was ready to rip someone apart. Though I couldn't quite cut off the sobs yet, I reached up and rubbed the mating mark I'd given him after I awoke from my change.

"You can't fight him, Major," I warned. "This isn't something you can put a stop to. Please, I can't relax enough to talk to you while you're like this, not in this case." While Jasper and I both tried to calm ourselves, Peter and Charlotte let themselves in and plopped down on the bed expectantly. Their casual movements didn't fool me, though I appreciated the effort. Even I could see and sense barely restrained fury in them. Carlisle, Esme, Eleazar, and Carmen came in next. They all leaned against a wall, facing us. Remembering I needed to practice the subtleties of acting more human, I pulled Jasper with me and sat on the bed beside Peter and Charlotte.

"All the others are in their rooms, apart from Alice," Eleazar informed me. "Everyone's listening, but we thought it best not to smother you."

"Alice is out hunting with Irwin," Esme added softly, "but she must have seen what happened in a vision if it was so terrible." Peter's brow furrowed.

"If that were true, she would have called one of us," he surmised.

"Or teleported back here to stop it herself," Char added. I opened my mouth to tell them intervening would have exacerbated the situation, but before I could get the words out, Alice and Irwin appeared in the middle of the room and Alice launched herself at me, hugging me awkwardly while Jasper still held me.

"I'm so sorry, Bella," she sobbed. "It was one of those domino visions. I was a little worried when I saw you with Annabeth, but you seemed okay so I ignored it. As soon as I saw you alone with Aro, I immediately decided to teleport back to you, but then I saw anyone coming near you would only make things worse! I wanted to get you away from him, Bella! I saw him attacking you! I'm so sorry!" Alice said all of that at top speed, so I had no chance to cut her off and tell her I knew no one could've helped me, even though I'd wished for Jasper's help a couple times. That was it, though. Before I could even begin my story, she'd dropped two of the biggest bombs. There were absolutely more than two, but those two were enough to set everyone off. Growls filled the room, and I could even hear the others in their own rooms growling and throwing things. I looked up at Jasper and saw the whites of his eyes had darkened again, just a shade or two lighter than his pitch black irises. The Major was back. Somehow, I was suddenly the calmest one in the room. I pried Alice's arms open, gently pushed her back to Irwin, and stood up. Jasper automatically grabbed my wrist. I laid my free hand over his.

"I'm not going anywhere, Major," I promised. "I just need you and everyone else to calm down and listen. You're absorbing too many negative emotions from me, and now everyone else. I'm going to amplify your gift. Focus on calming everyone, including yourself." Without further warning I drew forth my amplifying energy and forced it through our joined hands. I didn't need physical contact to use that gift, but the contact made it stronger. Jasper did as I asked and sent out a tsunami of calm, not only reaching those in our room, but to everyone listening in from the other rooms as well. The whites of his eyes lightened to their natural color again, but his irises remained black with lingering anger. "Thank you," I said simply. I shook the arm he was holding and he released me, allowing me to pace the room and refocus. Alice could only see things. Her visions were silent, so there was still a lot that even she didn't know. I had to explain this afternoon's events very carefully. Looking past the threats, I'd learned a lot of critically important information. That realization helped me shake off some of the fear from Aro's threats, allowing my initial anger to return. I wasn't a fool; I was afraid of Aro, but I knew I couldn't bend to his will and stay. Annabeth was already waiting in the wings to help us escape, no pun intended. I just had to convey everything that happened to the others, and then we'd work together to figure out an escape plan.

"I was singing in the shower, and when I got out I heard someone whistling the same tune back," I began. "At first I thought it was Jasper, but he didn't respond when I called out, and there was a strange scent outside the window: watermelon and fresh mint." Peter and Char both gasped. Right. Muddy human memory: they were there for the fight.

"That's Annabeth's scent," Char explained to everyone else.

"Annie," I corrected. "She said to call her Annie. She also apologized for her very brief involvement in that fight, and she said she only kept Victoria's head for a few days before burning her. No torture or anything." Carlisle and Esme smiled a little at that and Carlisle nodded in approval. "More importantly, she's been watching me, and she's here to help us. She says I'm not the only Saturno left, and that it's dangerous for a Saturno like me to be here…" My throat constricted for a moment, but after a quick wave of calm from Jasper I was able to continue. "That much was proven true only minutes later, but I can't jump ahead yet. Annie said there are two other Saturnos, Jillian and Lysander. She said she'll help us all escape tonight or tomorrow, and she'll take us to Lysander. I'm assuming she knows they'll stand with us." I spoke very softly. Peter shifted uncomfortably and nodded once.

"I just saw him," Peter said, turning to me. "You and Jasper were both there with him. It looked like you were in a cave."

"Stand with us?" Esme asked. "As in, in a fight?"

"We've all known for a while that all of this would eventually result in a fight," Jasper said grimly, taking my hand and pulling me back down onto his lap. I allowed it because I would need the comforting contact for the next part. Fear and anger were still warring within me; anger was winning, but I was still terrified. Jasper's arms wrapped around me and I covered his hands with mine.

"But I know the details now," I confessed, "and we'll absolutely need those two Saturnos, Annabeth, the wolves, and any other help we can get." Jasper's arms tightened around me. The other four mated pairs in the room pulled each other closer too.

"What happened with Aro?" Jasper inquired softly, somehow sounding compassionate and lethal simultaneously.

"And why were you in Chelsea's room?" Alice chimed in. Everyone raised their eyebrows, their movements so perfectly synchronized it would have been comical under different circumstances.

"Annie and I had spoken in Didyme's garden," I said. "Marcus almost caught us. He did see me, but Jasper and I go there all the time, so he wasn't surprised. Nonetheless, I ran back inside through the nearest door. I was just passing through when I came across Chelsea's open door. Aro was inside, and he told me to come in after I told Chelsea where to find Marcus, her future husband." All the women hissed. Jasper and Peter growled. Carlisle, Eleazar, and Irwin just shook their heads, Eleazar also covering his face with his hands. I decided to deal that blow then, getting it over with.

"Eleazar?" He dropped his hands and looked up at me. "I'm so sorry to tell you this, but it's one of the many things Aro confessed to me while trying to scare me into submission…"

I trailed off again because Jasper growled viciously behind me and tightened his arms around me even more. I focused on calming myself as much as I could and I pushed the feeling back into him. He quieted, but he didn't loosen his grip. I turned back to Eleazar… and there went my forced calm. Venom tears filled my eyes again. Eleazar still hated himself for getting his friends in the Guard killed over that mess with Didyme and the werewolves, even though he was under Aro's mind control when he did it. "Aro killed Didyme," I spat it out quickly. "He framed her guards and the werewolves for it. Marcus was going to leave the Volturi with Didyme, but you know how Aro covets the gifted. Chelsea couldn't bind Marcus to him unless the mating bond was broken, so he killed her. He had Chelsea bind him, and then Aro…" Crap. This was the worst part, the terrifying and devastating revelation I was still trying to wrap my head around. Carmen was hugging Eleazar close while he gaped at me over her shoulder, his eyes haunted. I opened my mouth to apologize to him again, but I was cut off by the rest of our family filing into the room.

"And Aro did what?" Kate asked me, bristling. She, Tanya, and Irina had gone over to stand with Carmen and Eleazar. Rose and Emmett sat down on the floor near the bed, staring up at me.

"The memory manipulator we've been looking out for is Aro," I said bluntly, feeling my emotions suddenly shut down completely, and not by Jasper's doing. In response, he actually removed one arm from my waist and began anxiously rubbing my mating mark and stroking my hair. "Aro's been lying and manipulating everyone since the Saturno hunts began," I continued flatly. "Aro is the oldest Saturno alive. He killed all the other Saturnos because they wouldn't cooperate with him or because they were too powerful. He wants to keep me here forever, but neither of his gifts work on me, so he threatened to kill all of you, the wolves, my parents, even Angela." Everyone was gaping at me in horror, but I plowed on, not meeting their eyes. "When Edward saw me with Jasper in December, he was glad you'd all take care of me again, but he couldn't face any of us again after seeing all the pain he caused, so he came here asking for death. From then on he was under the control of Aro and Chelsea. She's the only one here who knows about his second gift."

"Bella, we're absolutely following Annie," Jasper said firmly, turning me sideways in his lap so he could see my face. "I know you⏤the girl who ran off and faced a vampire alone to save her mother⏤I know you don't want to risk us getting hurt, but I'm sure I speak for everyone here when I say we won't let you suffer in our place."

A flicker of emotion came back and I gave my mate a small smile. "I know," I said. "We also can't stand by and let this continue. Aro is a ruthless megalomaniac, loyal only to himself. He plays both sides whenever he can, and he'll eventually destroy and conquer everything." My tiny smile fell and I could actually feel my eyes darken in despair again. I glanced over at Peter. "He was controlling Tristan too, you know. He knew about Tristan's gift and he had Tristan's mate torn apart, her pieces hidden around the country. Her name was Amelia. Her pieces are still out there somewhere because, even though Aro called Tristan and told him to attack La Push when we were all stuck here, he failed to help Victoria and the newborns defeat the wolves."

"That's it!" Jasper growled, standing up and pulling me to my feet with him. A wave of determination suddenly slammed into me, and by the looks of it everyone else. Absorbing the strong emotion hungrily, I looked up at my mate, meeting his piercing gaze. "What were the exact instructions Annie gave you?" He demanded.

"Be ready by tonight or tomorrow at the latest," I quoted Annie perfectly. "I'll get some cars ready for all of you. When you're ready, sing something again. If you hear me whistle the same tune back, it's go time."

"Tonight sounds good to me," Jasper casually ordered. There were very few clocks in the castle, but from the direction of the sun out the window I guessed it to be about six o'clock in the afternoon. It was June, so we had about three more hours 'til twilight. "Everyone go prepare. No one go near Aro." Like any of us needed to hear that last bit.

As everyone left our room, I followed them out and pulled Jasper along with me. He raised an eyebrow inquiringly. "Covering my tracks," I said by way of explanation. "You don't want me to go near the north wing alone again, do you?" That was all the convincing he needed.

As we reached the northwest corner of the castle, I saw the fiery red hair I'd dropped on the floor and I breathed a sigh of relief. I grabbed it up quickly and closed it in my fist again, but not before Jasper recognized it. "Why do you have that?"

"A bird dropped it," I spoke in code, wary of our proximity to the Guard's Wing. Jasper's brow furrowed and he nodded once. We turned to head back when we heard a door open and close behind us. I sniffed the air. Mugwort and mandarin orange: Jane. Jasper kept walking, but another muddy human memory made me stop in my tracks. Jasper only took a few more steps before turning to look at me, realizing I wasn't going to follow.

"Bella?" Jane called a second before she rounded the corner and saw me. "Oh, Jasper, hello," she added. I turned in time to see her nod to my mate in greeting, then she turned back to me. "What brings you back here?" She asked, "Were you two looking for someone?" My eyes flickered down to her small hands, seeing my old moonstone ring had been resized to fit her smaller fingers. Edward's wristband, my moonstone ring, my bachelorette party, Peter… 'It was important for you to befriend Jane. My knower told me so… not as urgent… a good month off yet, give or take a week… Jane saves your life.' It had been five weeks.

"You," I blurted out, realizing I had taken a little too long to respond. Technically, it was true. I did need her, or I would, but how?

Jane gave me a small smile. "Well, mission accomplished. How can I help you?" I nearly snorted. Wasn't that the million-dollar question? How could she help me? What did I need her to do? Peter's visions were always set in stone, but Alice's visions were more detailed. If Peter said Jane would save my life in some way, it was absolutely going to happen, but the details were unknown. The deadline was up. Jane was still under the control of Aro and Chelsea, and I could no longer use the bloodborne aspect of my gifts to transfer them to her and free her. Semi-friend or not, how could I trust her? She had to fit into all this somehow, but how? How?! Jasper had walked back over to stand beside me. Jane was waiting for an answer. I had to say something. Still scrambling to think of what to say, I opened my mouth to answer her.


	25. Flight

♀︎(Bella's POV)

"Do you want to go swimming?" I blurted out, making Jane blink at me in surprise. I didn't look at Jasper, but I felt carefully aimed waves of surprise and alarm bumping into me. I'd explain myself to him momentarily. Finally, I was thankful for my vampire brain. Having committed to a choice, my expanded thought capacity enabled me to throw a plan together in a matter of seconds. "I've run along or jumped over the west river a dozen times since my change, but it occurred to me that I've never tried swimming as a vampire. I'm sure I'd enjoy swimming in the ocean more, but I always thought it would be amazing to be able to go swimming without needing to breathe. Jasper promised Peter he'd help him prank Emmett, and I'm not going anywhere near that," I managed a genuine laugh, thinking of Emmett's infamous pranks. "Pranking wars with Emmett can go on for years, and once you get involved you're fair game." Jasper laughed at that cue, playing along with me until he knew what was going on.

"I'm not particularly busy at the moment," Jane admitted. "I was thinking of joining Heidi at the club, but a swim would be nice."

"Great," I interjected before she could go on. "I'll change into my swimsuit and meet you at the river." Jane nodded and gave me another small smile.

"I'll inform Master Aro I will be escorting you," She said as she turned and went back the way she came. I grabbed Jasper's hand and we bolted back toward our room.

"Remember Peter's vision about me and Jane?" I reminded Jasper as quietly as possible as we rounded the corner into the west wing. "It's been five weeks. It has to be today, and it makes sense considering what we're doing. We don't know what's going to happen though, so I have to keep her close without letting her hear or see what you and the others are up to. After what happened early this afternoon, going out with a Guard member alone might make Aro think he succeeded in making me submit to him, keeping his eyes off the rest of you and killing two birds with one stone. You make packs for the two of us and help the others along if Alice hasn't already done that."

We'd reached our room and I was changing into my simple navy blue and white striped bikini, showing off all thirteen of my bite scars, half acquired while I was human, half acquired during and shortly after my change. I still had a long way to go to catch up with my mate. Jasper had been nodding along in acceptance and agreement, but I could still see the anxiety and reluctance in his eyes.

"Bella, I know you aren't human anymore, and I know you can usually handle yourself," he said, "but you found out first hand this afternoon that things are even worse here in Volterra than we ever imagined. Even if it is Jane, and even if Peter saw her somehow saving you, I'm really not sure it's safe for any of us to be more than momentarily separated from the others, particularly you. Too many things could go disastrously wrong. If I'd been with you earlier, Aro wouldn't have attacked you."

"And he wouldn't have blabbed his secrets to me in his moment of egotistical overconfidence," I countered. "Yes, he frightened and angered me, and he physically attacked me, but being slammed into a wall and wrecking Chelsea's room was hardly a high price to pay for that kind of information. Right now I'm playing it by ear with Jane, but you know better than anyone that what Peter sees always happens, so until either he or Alice gets a clearer picture, Jane is glued to my side until we're clear of the area."

As he had before, Jasper simply nodded in reluctant agreement. For all my cool, logical talk, I was getting scared too and I was sure he could feel it. "I'd better get out there," I said a little shakily, hurrying over to give him a quick hug and kiss and leaping out our window before I chickened out. I couldn't stand it if anyone was hurt, or if Aro followed through on his promise and killed my family for my defiance. No. No one would get hurt. We'd all get through this. That's when I remembered our fight for freedom wouldn't stop when we escaped Volterra; we would be rallying allies and finding the other two Saturnos as soon as we got out, and there would be war. I shook those thoughts off when I came across Jane's scent and followed it to a spot about a quarter-mile upstream from the city, passing Demetri at the halfway point. Typical Aro. Demetri ran back to the city without a word as soon as I passed him, making it even more glaringly obvious that he'd been sent out solely for the purpose of checking that I came alone and to see where Jane and I would be since he couldn't track me.

"Hey, Jane," I said casually when I finally came within sight of her. Her swimsuit was a simple black one-piece with a short skirt-like ruffle at the bottom, modestly covering her bikini line and highlighting her true physical age when combined with the rest of the suit. She looked so young, and she seemed so normal and approachable like this. It made me wonder what a transformation she'd make when she met Jude, if she could be this soft and friendly around me.

"Hi, Bella," she responded just as casually. "So, did you learn to swim as a human or do I need to show you the correct form?" Jane's eyes twinkled with mirth and I laughed. Not knowing what else to talk about, I just dove into the river and I heard her dive in after me while I turned to swim upstream. How did I need her? How would she be involved in our escape? She would save my life, but in my experience saving lives usually involved some kind of tradeoff or sacrifice. I shook my head to dislodge that thought too, still not resurfacing. I refused to even consider that possibility. In our effort to appease Aro long enough for me to change and adjust to this new life, we'd lied and kept Jane and her mate apart. Even now the thought of what we'd done to both Jane and Jude caused a surge of self-loathing in me, a feeling I tried to hide from Jasper whenever possible, because I knew when it broke through near him that he could read my mind better than Edward or Aro ever could. Hell, it didn't help that Jude was a member Maria's coven. I had to get Jane to Jude somehow. I would. But how?

When I finally resurfaced, I'd been underwater for about fifteen minutes, swimming at what I thought to be a moderate pace. When I took in my surroundings and couldn't see, hear, or smell Jane, I panicked. "Jane?!" A high, pure, joyful laugh reached my ears then; I didn't know that tiny thing could laugh that loudly. I laughed in response, my momentary panic forgotten. The next sound I heard came from Jane's tiny feet running toward me on land, and I could smell her sweet and earthy scent on the breeze again. When she reached me she was still giggling and only a little damp.

"Forgot you're a newborn again, Bella?" She giggled. Oops. I hadn't had the opportunity to test and modify my strength in water. I cringed.

"How fast was I going?"

A loud laugh burst from Jane's lips again. "Well, as you know, even small vampires like Alice Cullen and me are still heavy and sturdy enough to be unaffected by almost any current or tide." I nodded while her laughter slowly subsided. "You were swimming upstream fast enough to create a current strong enough to knock me downstream. I couldn't swim after you." Jane's giggles bubbled up once more and I was sure if I were still human I'd be red as a tomato.

"Sorry," I murmured, head down and shoulders curled in embarrassment.

"It's okay, Bella," Jane said, smiling fondly at me. "Just further proof that you really were overdue for a vampire swimming lesson." Suddenly Jane's smile fell slightly and she appeared fascinated with a rock by her feet. "Plus, it almost made me feel human again, if only for a moment," she admitted softly. I leapt out of the water to hug her.

"It's a nice feeling, isn't it?" I asked. "You were turned so young."

"It was," Jane said meekly, "I was."

I had to do it. I had to say it. "Jane, we found your mate," I blurted before I lost my nerve. "Jasper, Peter, and some of the others met him at my wedding, and when they did both Peter and Alice saw you'd be mates. With all that fuss going on and all those vampires present, I don't think Marcus bothered using his bond-sight, but if both Peter and Alice saw you together it has to be true. Eleazar was allowed to leave the Guard when he met Carmen. Don't you think you could leave for your mate? Maybe they'd even let Alec go with you, since you're his biological sister." I knew Aro wouldn't ever willingly let either of them leave of course, but I couldn't malign him while she was still loyal. Either way, my babbling was abruptly cut off when Jane shoved me back.

"I have a mate?" She asked me incredulously, the sparkle in her eyes overtaken by a glare. "And you knew since your wedding?" She shook her head and fingered my old moonstone ring on her dainty hand. I'd given it to her the night before the wedding, right before the others told me about Jude. "We're friends, aren't we? So you would have told me. This is just what Master Aro warned us about. He said you and your coven mates and friends would try to trick us into helping you or joining your coven instead!" Case and point.

"No, Jane, no!" I interjected desperately, "It's not like that at all! We just knew Aro was still upset at the time about Irwin turning out to be Alice's mate. We wanted to tell you from day one, but we were giving Aro time to see that Irwin was voluntarily staying with the Guard while he had a mate outside the Guard. After that, it was just a matter of finding the right time and the right way to tell you. You haven't met him yet, so the ties Chelsea is helping you keep to your masters and the Guard are still intact," I backpedaled. "You can think about it rationally and make the choice when you're ready. There's no rush. I just couldn't wait any longer to tell you, not when I see you like this. You never seem so genuinely happy around anyone but your brother and me, and once we're gone so is that joy. Your mate could make you happy forever. I'm so sorry I didn't tell you sooner, Jane, I'm so sorry. We are friends. I want us to stay friends. Please forgive me," I begged.

Jane stared at me for almost a minute in silence, her hard glare slowly melting into a look of hurt before emotion vacated her cherubic face altogether. "I'll forgive you," she said cooly, "and I'll think about it." I nodded solemnly, at a complete loss for what else to say. Jane turned and started walking back downstream and I followed in her wake. When we reached the point of the river at which we'd met, she stopped, but she kept her back to me for a long moment.

"What's his name?" She whispered, and I heard the faintest crack in her voice on the second word. I hesitated. Telling her of her mate had been a big risk, a risk that still might blow up in my face. Was it safe to give her his name yet? If Aro read her mind, he might send some of the Guard to kill Jude, and probably Maria and Alanna too, so the coven wouldn't seek revenge. When Jane turned to me with that pained look in her scarlet eyes again, I caved. I had said too much, and I couldn't turn back.

"Jude," I whispered back. "His name is Jude. I have yet to meet him myself, honestly, but from what the others tell me, he couldn't be more perfect for you." And Jane was hugging me again, her little body shaking with dry sobs. I was stunned. Jane was crying. A Volturi Guard member was crying with her head on my chest. I never imagined someone still bound by both Aro and Chelsea could experience such deep emotion, much less express it outwardly.

So wrapped up in our emotions, we missed the approach of two vampires from above and had no time to properly react. Two male growls erupted from the trees on either side of us and we sprang apart, giving our attackers just the opening they wanted. Alec dove down from a tree and tackled me while Demetri dropped down behind Jane and pulled her back. Jane reflexively turned and dropped Demetri to the ground with her gift. Alec and I rolled on the ground, growling and snapping at each other. Jasper, Peter, and Char had only been able to cover the basics of combat training with me, and Alec was too accustomed to only fighting with his gift. He attacked wildly and recklessly, not doing much damage until he finally managed to bite the inside of my left elbow. I hissed in pain and that was when Jane turned her attention from Demetri, turning her glare on Alec only to immediately stop herself. She couldn't hurt her brother that way. Nonetheless, I cried out for her.

"Jane!" I shrieked, "Jane, help me! Please!" Jane stood frozen in place, ambivalent and confused. Demetri had recovered and grabbed her again, throwing her face down on the ground and pinning her down.

"How dare you act like Jane is yours," Alec snarled, "or this Jude's! I'm her twin brother and this is our family! I won't let you won't corrupt her, Saturno freak!" Alec found another opening and bit my neck, and Jane and I both growled and screamed in protest. I risked a look in Jane's direction and saw Demetri biting into her neck as well as she struggled to get to me. I saw red.

Gathering every bit of my newborn strength to shove Alec off me, I tossed him straight up in the air and rolled to the side and up to my feet while he was airborne. Jane couldn't use her gift on Demetri while she couldn't look at him, so I charged and threw myself at the tracker, knocking him off Jane and trying to pin him, but Demetri was a much more capable fighter than Alec, so that proved difficult. That is, until Jane recovered and turned her evermore baleful glare on him. Seeing Alec coming at us again, I did what I knew I had to do. I grabbed Demetri's jaw and the back of his head, twisting hard so his head came off with a metallic keening sound. Having nothing to quickly light a fire, I tossed Demetri's head to the opposite side of the river. Alec reached Jane before I could, and once again Jane faltered instead of attacking her brother. For all his talk, he didn't show her the same respect. When Jane went on the defensive and just tried to block his path to me, he got a hold of her and bit the same spot Demetri had. I growled my outrage and charged, slipping one arm around Jane's waist and sliding between Alec's legs on my back. No idea where that move came from, but it served its purpose. As my superior strength brought Jane down on top of me and under Alec, he lost his footing and tumbled, releasing his sister and somersaulting forward.

Another pair of running footsteps could be heard fast approaching and murderous growls tore through the air. I would have feared for my life if the male and female growls weren't so familiar. Jasper and Alice both fell on Alec, so I felt comfortable turning my back to them to tend to Jane. She was shaken up, probably more so than she'd ever been in her immortal life thus far, seeing as Eleazar told me the Romanian war was more of a massacre with the twins' combined power. Acting on instinct, I bent down slightly and lapped at the layered bite marks on Jane's neck, sealing them with my venom. Jane hissed at the feeling of more foreign venom entering her system, but soon she relaxed. When I heard Jasper and Alice ripping Alec apart behind me, I tensed and threw my shield out around them, expecting a reflexive attack from Jane, but it didn't come. She watched what was happening with fresh venom tears in her eyes, but she simply murmured, "Please only burn Demetri," before giving me the same treatment I'd bestowed upon her.

"Jane," I gasped, venom tears welling up in my own eyes when our eyes met again. She looked like a child. Ignoring the eye color, she looked like a human of her physical age would after witnessing something truly horrific, so devastated and vulnerable. She was free.

"Can you take me to Jude?" She whispered brokenly. I nodded and pulled her into my arms again.

"We're all escaping tonight," I whispered in her ear as quietly as possible, "and we're taking you with us." Jane hugged me tighter before we released each other and turned back to our saviors. I grabbed Jane's hand and pulled her with me as I ran into Jasper's arms. Alice took Jane's hand from mine and held her in my stead.

"It wasn't just my blood," I told Jasper and Alice.

"We know," Jasper said, "your gifts are venomborne too."

"That's what Peter saw," Alice explained. "He got an image of the venom exchange you and Jane just had about twenty minutes after you left for the river, only a minute or two before I saw Alec's decision to ask Demetri to bring him to the two of you, and his subsequent decision to attack you when he heard what you were telling her." I nodded, my head still pressed against Jasper's chest. That was when I realized I could smell burnt vampire, but I could only spot a tiny wisp of purple smoke in the air above us. Jasper followed my line of sight.

"Demetri's head," he explained grimly, "and his head alone. No head, no vampire. It's the reverse of what Annie did with Victoria. In that instance, Victoria technically lived until she burnt the head. This way, Demetri's irreversibly dead but we avoid drawing attention to the area with a big pillar of smoke. We sunk his body in the river, and we scattered Alec's pieces in the brush on either side of the water." Jane whimpered slightly, but she made no other sound of protest.

"We have to get back," Alice reminded us. "It's almost time and we can't appear rushed."

The four of us ran back to the castle at our normal speed, so Jane and I were almost completely dry when we stepped inside. Feigning formality, we avoided physical contact with Jane and merely nodded in acknowledgement and thank before parting ways to change clothes. Once I was back in jeans and a simple long-sleeved shirt that covered the evidence of my recent fight with Alec and Demetri, everyone else gathered in our room, two or three at a time every few minutes. We all made small talk and loosed occasional laughter for the sake of any surreptitious passerby. The final light knock on the door came at exactly nine o'clock and we let Jane in. She was back in her Guard garb, but once inside she quickly pulled off everything but her simple black sheath dress, her matching shoes, and my moonstone ring. She even broke the chain of her Volturi necklace in her haste to rip off what she finally recognized as a collar. With everyone assembled and more than half our party carrying a tote bag or backpack on their person, I walked to the window. Not wanting to risk blowing our cover at this critical point, I didn't chance repetition.

"I was five and he was six. We rode on horses made of sticks. He wore black and I wore white. He would always win the fight. Bang, bang. He shot me down. Bang, bang. I hit the ground. Bang, bang. That awful sound. Bang. Bang. My baby shot me down."

There was a moment's pause as we waited in dead silence, and then the last six notes were quietly whistled back from outside. I leaned out the window to scan the courtyard, finding it clear until a fisted hand emerged from dense branches atop a distant tree. The tree only rustled slightly when Annie threw the wadded up paper in her hand at me. I snatched it out of the air as soon as I could reach it and slipped back inside. Unfurling the mess of paper and quickly scanning the pages, I passed most of them to Irwin. She'd written a detailed description of where we'd find our getaway cars, complete with a hand-drawn illustration of the area. I quickly summarized the additional note she'd included: "Annie saw Felix and two of the other big fighters sparing outside at the northeast junction. She's going to hover in some clouds overhead and make sure they don't come too close to us. She'll go with one of the last groups."

"Assisi, Italy," Irwin murmured. "Well, that's easier than I expected. If measured by human driving laws, it's about two hours away."

"Two hours?" Tanya asked incredulously, "We're staying in the country?"

"No jumping to conclusions or getting cold feet now," I said. "Annie said she would take us to Lysander and help us find Jillian. If she's not instructing us to teleport far, Lysander must be close." I was very worried about the wolves. I'd at least have to call them once we were temporarily safe again. I was hoping we'd teleport back to the States too, but I trusted Annie, and finding the other Saturnos was critically important. Teleportation would be fast even without my amplification if we were covering such a short distance; our escape would be faster and safer, with less time spent split up.

"Bella's amplification will speed things up even more," Irwin tried to reassure Tanya.

"No," Jane cut in before I could. "With that distance, you'll be fast enough. Bella should go last." Several of the others opened their mouths to argue, but I cut them off.

"I was going to say the same thing," I insisted. "Just in case someone else comes by, we have to remember I'm the one they want. I'm the only one they really care about, so we can keep them from checking on us by letting them see and hear me."

"And me," Jane added. "Two Guard members missing will arouse suspicion soon enough. I have to go with the last group too."

Jasper scowled at the two of us, but he could clearly see the logic so he didn't argue. There was no need for him to say he was in our group as well. No mates would be separated in this process apart from Alice and Irwin. "Carlisle and Esme first," Jasper ordered, "then Alice and Kate, Eleazar and Carmen, Emmett and Rose, Tanya and Irina, then Peter and Char. Bella, Jane, Annie, and I will go last via amplified teleportation." Everyone nodded and Carlisle and Esme stepped forward and took Irwin's hands. Irwin gave Alice and I each a reassuring nod before teleporting away with my vampire parents in tow.

"Let's make a quick lap around the main corridors," I told Jasper and Jane. "We'll make sure everyone sees, smells, or hears us, and then we can hurry back for our turn." Jane nodded in agreement, but Jasper looked torn again. "Alice, Kate, and Emmett alone are more than capable of protecting the landing area and everyone accumulating there, Major, and you have Peter and Char going second-to-last, so they've got this room and Annie's on lookout overhead."

"We'll have to move as fast as we can without raising suspicion," he commented, giving in. "We can't risk leaving this wing entirely empty for more than a minute or so either." I nodded in assent, as did Jane.

As planned, we moved at a steady clip just short of a jog, making small talk the whole time. We all relaxed a little when we made it through the north wing, even more when we made it to the southeastern junction, then a booming voice tore through the night air from the southwest and everything went to hell in a hand basket.

"Masters!" Felix cried from somewhere outside. I froze for a moment, already knowing what had happened. Annie had been watching them, and if they had come any closer to our rooms she would have alerted us, but she didn't know we'd need warning if Felix and the other two fighters ventured into the west forest by the river. Alec's pieces and the remains of the dead tracker, Demetri, had been discovered. Jasper, Jane, and I dashed toward the west wing, hoping all the others were gone and that Irwin waited only for us. "Demetri's dead!" Felix boomed again. I flinched and kept running. "He and Alec were in the river!" I grabbed Jane's hand and pulled her along faster when she faltered at the mention of her twin. Judging by the direction and volume of the voices, the three burly Guards and the reassembled Alec were less than one-hundred yards from the southwest side-entrance. We sped past that very door and turned into the west wing only to come face to face with Aro, Marcus, and Caius. Boxed in, we had no time to react before Felix plowed in right behind us, carrying Alec. As if that wasn't enough to make me panic, Marcus was looking back and forth between Jane and me, taking Aro's hand.

"ANNIE! IRWIN!" I screamed as Aro's piercing, furious glare fell on me.

"You shredded all her bonds!" Aro snarled just as another large Guard came in carrying Demetri's soaked and headless body. Thankfully, Annie swooped down on the third large Guard before he could enter behind us and make use of his free hands. I heard what could only be Demetri's body thudding to the floor. "You little bitch, I warned you not to defy me again and you did so within the day!" Aro growled again and Caius just went along with it; rip to pieces now and ask questions later had always been his style, and we were clearly in it deep this time. I could hear Felix setting Alec down, approaching with the other Guard, anticipating orders. Thinking fast, I grabbed Jasper's left hand with my right and rotated my hand so my palm faced forward, trying to communicate to him to prepare a back attack. I did the opposite with Jane, hoping seeing Aro like this would reaffirm what her free mind had shown her, giving her the courage to bring down her old masters. They each squeezed my hands in what I hoped was understanding and I squeezed back harder, releasing power and energy into them. They didn't hesitate.

Jane brought down Aro, Caius, and Marcus all at once, making them thrash and scream in pain. Jasper attacked with some combination of emotions that produced a similar result, though the three at our back were quieter. "Annie!" I called again, and she flew inside and over all the fallen vampires. Irwin smashed the door of our room open and ran toward us. We leapt over the fallen Volturi kings and ran to meet him with Annie. Irwin got a hold of Annie's hand first, and I started to guide Jane to the same arm as Annie so Jasper and I could take the other.

"Jane!" Alec cried out in a distorted, agonized rasp. We all turned toward the cry. Aro and Caius were standing again, holding Alec up, slowly ripping him to pieces again… much, much smaller pieces.

"Do you remember what we did with Tristan's mate, Jane?" He goaded our weakest link, knowing the biological bond between the twins remained intact either way. "You go ahead and leave with your new friends, and if you ever decide to come back, perhaps we'll be able to recognize most of your dear brother's pieces enough to reassemble him. Some of the finer intricacies will be lost of course, but we can make him recognizable for you."

"NO!" Jane screamed, letting go of Irwin and racing back toward her brother.

"Jane, no!" Jasper and I both cried out. Without thinking I ran to grab her, hoping my newborn speed would allow me to retrieve her in time. It didn't. As soon as she was within arm's reach, Aro dropped Alec, grabbed Jane, and tore her head off with one hard jerk of his arm, all the while smiling at me. I knew I was screaming and growling. I knew I was still moving forward, but again I was somehow too slow. Irwin, Annie, and Jasper all grabbed me first. I thrashed, but Jasper pulled me closer and shouted something that fell on deaf ears. Blasting me with calm resolve and determination, he shouted again.

"BELLA, AMPLIFY!" My mate. My family. Jane… I amplified. We teleported. We were gone.


	26. Neptune

♂︎(Jasper's POV)

It was hard to concentrate with my wife and mate in such a state. We were safe inside one of four cars Annie had stolen for us. Annie was our driver, leading the way to Catanzaro. The fact that one of the other two Saturnos was in Italy was unfortunate, but we'd killed Demetri and used teleportation. The Volturi had no idea where to begin searching for us. Another wave of quiet agony slammed into me and drew my attention back to my grieving mate. Bella's body and face were rigid and expressionless even as I felt the maelstrom of emotions in her. Aro's desperate and brutal gambit to derail our escape stunned and hurt us all, but I knew my Bella. I didn't need to feel the crushing guilt bleeding out of her to know she felt responsible for Jane and for what happened to her. It felt much like the cocktail of guilt and shame I would feel coming from Carlisle whenever Rose was in a particularly foul mood, venting to anyone and everyone that she detested vampirism and wished she were human. Bella chose to tell Jane about her mate and she severed her false bonds after the fight that broke out, and she was undoubtedly questioning her choices.

"What exactly did Peter see?" I blinked and Annie jumped slightly when Bella spoke for the first time since we left Volterra. "He was so cryptic when he told me…. He just said Jane would save my life. If I hadn't taken her to the river and told her about Jude, she wouldn't have needed to save me from Alec and Demetri, but I took her to the river because of what Peter told me, and I know the things he sees aren't self-fulfilling prophecies." Bella's voice was soft and flat, like she was still lost in thought but finally functioning through it.

"All he saw was Jane holding your hand and using her gift to attack others around you. He could barely make out the robes of Guards on the periphery, enough in number to defeat you, and he could sense their intent to kill. Of course, Aro, Caius, and Marcus ended up being there too."

"It's just as I thought," Bella murmured. "I remember thinking at the river, saving lives has a price, usually a sacrifice…"

"Aro won't really kill Jane or Alec," Annie commented. "He needs them, now more than ever." Anger abruptly took up residence in Bella's previously vacant eyes, but I cut her off before she could lash out.

"What Annie means is we'll have more chances to save her," I soothed, gently grabbing Bella's chin and turning her face so our eyes met. "I won't lie and say they won't harm her, but they won't destroy her. They'll try to reclaim control of her mind and bonds so they can use her without fear of rebellion, and they'll likely use pain to force her cooperation if needed, but you can always free her again, and we can still get her to Jude somehow." Bella just stared at me, emotions finally flickering in her eyes and animating her features again, but for several minutes she said nothing. Abruptly, she closed the distance between us and curled into me, her head against my chest, where I gladly held he. Still shaken by that disastrous exit myself, I absently rubbed the fresh bite scars inside her elbow and on her neck. 

"Why bother with the cars?" Bella suddenly asked Annie, "We'd eventually need them, yes, but why steal them back in Assisi? Why not teleport all the way to… wherever Lysander is?"

"I thought it best to leave random scent trails," she shrugged. "The Volturi will expect us to rely heavily on teleportation, so when they happen across our scents somewhere, they'll assume at least a few of us are in the area and spend more time searching for us. We'll abandon these cars several miles from the northernmost point of Catanzaro. Lysander's home, for lack of a better word, is at the southernmost point, off the cliffs of Catanzaro Lido."

"Off the cliffs?" I felt Bella's brow furrowing against me. "Peter said he saw us in a cave."

"The entrance is underwater, but there's a large hollow inside above sea level. He travels occasionally, but he resides there for the most part. He prefers to keep to himself."

"Sounds like Carlisle's friend Alistair," I thought aloud.

"That surly, skittish tracker?" Annie laughed darkly, "No even close. I've met both Alistair and Lysander, the latter more than once, and Lysander's got more courage and honor in one of his fingers than Alistair has in his entire being."

"But you make it sound like he's hiding from something," Bella half-heartedly argued.

"I told you I'll let him decide how much of his story to tell you, but you may as well know the Volturi technically know about him, just not who he is."

"That makes no sense," Bella muttered, shifting her position across my lap so she could bury her face fully in my shoulder, instinctively inhaling a long breath of my scent to calm herself.

"It will."

We all fell silent for the rest of the ride, though Bella and I communicated a little more via emotional exchange. Bella managed to get a better grip on her emotions again and sent them out in short bursts in place of comments or questions, first telling me she was terribly frightened despite her earlier resolve. I reflected the same feelings back to her in answer. I was afraid of all we would face next too. I feared for my friends, my family, my mate... I knew the same was true for Bella, of course, but I thought she was also beginning to fear herself. Seeing what Aro had become and hearing that Lysander was in hiding for reasons yet unknown, it was only natural for her to question all that being a Saturno entailed. Much like my experience with my Major persona, she was grateful for her extra power and strength, but also afraid of what she might be forced to do with it… and how others would inevitably judge her for it. I hated that my mate and I would soon have far too much in common. She would be hurt, and there was only so much I could do about it. I could feel the Major stirring in me even as I thought of it, taking it as a challenge. 'We'll see about that,' he whispered in the deep recesses of my mind. 'Just let me out and we'll see if anyone tries to come near her.' An image of Aro in pieces at my feet flashed in my mind before I pushed it away, and I promised the Major I'd let him out as needed. Refocusing on Bella, I felt a precise, carefully constructed shot of confusion, insecurity, and longing. Lysander. She was wary of him, and rightly so with Aro being the only other Saturno we'd met, and she wondered how he would really receive her. Annie and Peter were both sure he would swear allegiance to us, and Bella longed for another friendly Saturno to connect with on some level. The Major stirred again, 'If he knows what's good for him, he'll respect her and guard her well.'

In no time at all, we were pulling off Via Vescovo Luigi Agazio into a heavily forested area beneath a small villa. Annie drove right into a wide opening in the trees and slowed to a stop about twenty yards into the shadows of the trees. Night had fallen, so we did not need the cover from sunlight, but it was a good place to leave the cars, all four hidden where gaps in the wood allowed their passage. "Hide your bags up in the trees," Annie instructed as we all exited our vehicles. "Unless Irwin can take us to a specific part of an underwater cave he's never seen, we're teleporting to Porto di Catanzaro Lido and swimming from there."

"Most of us won't stay long," Alice interjected. "He won't like so many visitors in a tight space. I see him speaking to Eleazar for a few minutes, but then he's alone with Bella and Jasper as Peter saw. We'll just introduce ourselves and leave them to talk."

"That will give us a chance to come back here and make some calls," Carlisle mused. "Most of our friends don't carry phones, but it's a start before we hunt on foot."

"Good, let's begin," Irwin said as he dropped down from the tree he'd chosen. "Reverse order this time, in amplified groups."

Bella changed back into the striped bikini she wore to swim in the river with Jane, so she didn't look out of place at all among the boats, sand, and undulating waves, even if it was past nightfall. There were still several humans in similar attire strolling along the sprawling shoreline. She was better dressed than the rest of us for our swim to Lysander's dwelling. According to Annie, the cliffs were closer to the border of the province and the swim would take us about fifteen minutes, assuming no one needed to stop and drain a fish. Her hunting joke was half-hearted, and she was unsurprised when she received nothing but forced smiles in response. Annie walked toward the water and casually discarded her clothes while we were still in human sight range, drawing a soft chuckle from Bella when we all saw that our new friend was also clad in a bathing suit. Once we were out of sight, the three succubi stripped down to their underwear and tucked their clothes between some rocks for easy access on the way back. The rest of us chose to remain as we were, as a quick run would dry our clothing easily enough.

"Just when she met her true mate and could be happy with him for eternity, this happens," Bella murmured as we waded out into the water. She was watching Alice. Making no effort to spare her clothes as the Denali women had, Alice entered the ocean fully clothed. Luxury and frivolity had no place in war, and whether we liked it or not, the war had begun.

"The same could be said about us, but some idiot did tell us something about our true mates seeing us through anything." I snatched the wet shirt Peter threw at me out of the air before it could hit its mark. My curiosity won out over my urge to start a playful fight and I raised a questioning brow at him.

"Show your scars," Char answered for him, strategically knotting her own shirt to show as much scarred skin as possible without removing it entirely. Did Peter see a need for that kind of intimidation? Deciding not to press the matter, I tossed my shirt aside as well.

The swim took longer than fifteen minutes, mainly because of Bella's erratic movement. When she and I surfaced for a moment so she could explain her strong feelings of insecurity to me, she explained how her 'swimming lesson' with Jane had gone, how Jane hadn't been able to swim after her without being forced backward. We rejoined the others below hand-in-hand, and we kept our fingers locked as she swam at her natural pace, my weight anchoring her just enough for the rest of the group to match us. The reminder that she wasn't even two full months into this life yet weighed as heavily on my heart as an anchor. There were vampire wars, and there were newborn wars, but I couldn't recall hearing of a time in our history when a single newborn was in a leadership position in a large scale supernatural war involving more than our own kind. She didn't deserve such a heavy burden, but none of us had a choice. It was done, and we would survive to see the fall of the Volturi or burn trying to defeat them.

Just as Annie promised, about thirty feet below sea level, at the junction of the cliff wall and the sea floor, we came upon a circular cave entrance no more than five feet in height and just under three feet in width. Even in broad daylight, the water here would be too dark and murky for human eyes to see it unless they were within a yard of it, and even that would be a stretch. Surely no human would have the nerve to enter it, even if they did come across it, fearing creatures within or thinking they might be trapped inside. Annie signaled to us to wait and she swam in alone. Three minutes and twenty-three seconds later, she returned and waved us in after her. Bella surged forward first, dragging me into the opening with her, and the others snaked in behind us. Our course only remained horizontal for twenty-seven feet before we seemingly came to a dead end, but Annie led us straight up into a perfectly cylindrical channel. Moments after we pushed off the ground with our feet, we could just make out the surface of the water above. We all looked around in awe as we each breached the surface and happily breathed in stale, humid air faintly tinged with the smell of cold blood. The space we found ourselves in could hardly be called a cave. Smooth walls, furnishings made from the same stone... This was Lysander's home.

Lysander stood at the far side of the dome in which we found ourselves, his stance strong but his emotions mostly calm. He neither spoke nor made a move to approach, clearly waiting for us to come to him, and at a pace that would not smother him. A sharp feeling of agonizing recognition slammed into my back, and I turned to look at Eleazar, Bella automatically turning with me and frowning at the sight of his slack jaw and haunted eyes. We had seen that look on the plane when her blood first freed him of his false memories. I was vaguely aware of Annie climbing out of the water and moving to stand at a point halfway between us and Lysander, but I kept my attention on Eleazar as he tentatively swam forward, wordlessly touching Bella's arm and moving past us to climb out and approach Lysander first, each step hesitant, measured.

"Lysander, this is Eleazar Denali," Annie spoke encouragingly. "Eleazar, Lysander has only a vague memory of you, but you seem to remember him?"

"As if it were yesterday," Eleazar replied, pausing to incline his head in Bella's direction, "especially since my true memories have been completely restored. I… You can ask our empath, Jasper, about the sincerity of my words if you believe me to be blindly groveling, but… I am truly humbled and honored to see you again." And he was. "I understand your limited memory of me, of course, as you were undergoing the change when our paths crossed."

"That is what Piers told me," the strange vampire murmured, not too kindly, but still nodding in graceful acceptance. "You were the Guard he knew to be gifted with the ability to identify the gifts of others. He did not relate to me the names of the other Guards with you then, if he recognized them at all, but he recognized you. Already intent on raising and training me in this new life, his passion was redoubled because he knew you read us both, as brief as the encounter may have been." Eleazar was nodding somberly while the rest of us continued treading water, watching and listening.

"The villagers were preparing to burn Alec and Jane, still human then," Eleazar whispered bleakly. Bella gasped at the mention of Jane and climbed out of the water as if to approach, but she stopped and remained standing at the water's edge where I slowly moved to join her. Lysander's eyes flickered over both of us, but he returned his attention to Eleazar quickly. "Yes, I could tell you were both Saturnos, and regrettably it was indeed my passage of information to Aro that led to your father's capture and execution. Please… ask anyone here… I had no concept of what I would set in motion. The ramifications of it all completely eluded me, and then we heard your father was one of their accusers… Well, that sealed his fate in Aro's eyes, as he coveted the twins so fiercely." 

"He was not my father. Piers was my sire." Lysander's expression gave nothing away, but the familial title struck a nerve with him. The distinction was important.

"My apologies," Eleazar bowed his head automatically, but a more sincere apology over a trivial slip of the tongue there never was. Eleazar cleared his throat, a nervous habit he'd picked up while mingling with humans, and he gestured to the water behind him. "Most of us will be leaving in moments. We don't mean to overwhelm you, but Annie told us you were amenable to introductions?" Lysander simply nodded. Though Bella and I were already out of the water, Eleazar beckoned his own family forward as he already stood with Lysander. Eleazar formally introduced all of them and all four women nodded politely, the three sisters trying to cover themselves with their arms, abruptly losing some of their succubi confidence while standing before this vampire so scantily clad. His emotions remained relatively neutral, scrutinizing everyone but judging no one. Carlisle followed Eleazar's lead and came forward to introduce himself, Esme, Rose, Emmett, Alice, and ex-Guard Irwin. Peter and Char took that as their cue to come forward, and I finally felt a distinct shift in Lysander's emotions. He maintained a calm and cool exterior as they introduced themselves, but his emotions started bouncing around between wariness, admiration, dread, anticipation, and anger. As soon as they finished their introductions, Annie called everyone but the two of us to follow her back to the port. They all complied, each of them only sending us silent nods of encouragement as they sank back into the sea.

The three of us stood still for a long moment. As Lysander's eyes flickered over us again, there was the same rotation of emotions: wariness, admiration, dread, anticipation, anger, and two more… speculation with a dash of wry humor. "So you're the two happy newlyweds who publicly defied the Volturi and had vampires around the world gossiping like teenagers within the day. The legendary Major Whitlock and his teenaged Saturno mate, Isabella Whitlock." He gave Bella one more once over. "Well, the rumors about you being far from your average newborn are true anyway."

"Bella, please, Lysander,” my mate corrected, cutting in before I could react to the veiled insult. The Major was already hissing indignantly in my head. "It's nice to meet you. I'm glad the only other Saturno I have to look to isn't a ruthless megalomaniac." Lysander cracked a small smile, admiring her nerve, but he shook his head.

"Annabeth has been insisting for a century that I call her Annie, and I have yet to do so. Good luck convincing me to change my ways for you. You were right to cut short my attempt to goad the real Major out, however. I'm sure I'll see plenty of him in the days to come, and Annabeth told me you've inquired about my past more than once. It is a pleasant surprise for me as well, to meet another Saturno, so I'll indulge you. Please, sit anywhere you like."

Bella and I settled down on a stone bench protruding from the wall, the lines so clean I could feel the cogs turning in the back of my mind wondering how he'd shaped the stone so immaculately; even grinding away thin layers with varied pressure would leave some visible imperfections. Still, the majority of my focus was riveted on our new ally as he sat opposite us on another sculpture that resembled a small armchair. Even I had to admit Lysander was intimidating in appearance. Even without knowing he was another Saturno, his frame and features suggested he was physically strong and agile even as a human. Seemingly turned in his late twenties or early thirties, he was six-foot-three-inches tall with broad shoulders tapering down in an inverted triangle, his musculature visible through his dry turquoise t-shirt. His legs were long but sturdy, clad in well-worn jeans that skimmed large, bare feet. He looked like your average nomad in many ways, until you looked at his face: rectangular, with a strong jaw covered by a thick but short and well-groomed black beard, short and precise sideburns moving upward into hair just long enough to swing slightly when he sat. No, he was too well-groomed to be compared to your average nomad.

"It must have taken a while to grind this furniture down," Bella voiced my earlier thought in a light and friendly tone, but I could feel her growing discomfort. This was rather awkward. I sent a wave of ease out to Bella and Lysander both, trying to make it as subtle as possible, but Lysander's wide lips twitched up into a knowing smirk.

"No need for that, Major," he assured me sincerely. "I'm only giving you time to get your thoughts in order. Annabeth told me of your tumultuous flight from Volterra and Isabella here is a newborn; I don't want to overwhelm her and offend you for it. I had my bit of fun, and now that time has passed."

"No offense taken. Anyone will tell you I'm far from your average newborn," Bella replied immediately and Lysander's deep-set eyes twinkled again at her pluck, though his heavy brows masked some of that visible humor.

"Not having to sculpt it by hand certainly expedited the process, Isabella," he said, nodding graciously in response to her comment on his work. Curiosity and confusion flared within Bella and within me. Lysander was suddenly brimming with a mixture of smugness, sportiveness, and a hint of trepidation he was making a valiant effort to bury, obviously concerned that I could feel it. He extended his hand toward a small pile of rocks that looked like the ones we'd walked across on the beach. He flexed his hand so his palm faced the pile, and one of the rocks flew across the cave into his hand.

I stared in stunned silence and Bella gaped for a second before recollecting herself.

"You're telekinetic!" Bella's excited observation still came out as a distracted whisper as we watched the rock hover above his hands, both cupped below the levitating stone. Lysander's gaze was penetrating as he focused on the stone. After another fraction of a second, we could hear grinding. Particles of stone fine as ash began flowing, first a mere trickle and soon a cloud as the pressure of Lysander's telekinetic power shaped the stone with laser precision. He moved his hands through the air as if he were sculpting a much larger vase from supple, wet clay, the stone spinning on an invisible axis while his hands orbited around, his eyes unmoving. Finally, the grinding noise ceased and he caught the small stone vase in his hand by its base, turning it upside-down so all the remaining debris poured out. Turning the object upright again, he touched a finger to the side facing him and moved it in a pattern indicative of writing, a soft grinding noise renting the air again, this time for just a moment. He pressed his palm over whatever he'd written and I could just make out an odd bell-like sound resonating from within the vase, vibrations of his power I guessed. Finally, he turned the vase around and we could see our name, 'Whitlock', chiseled into the stone face in an impossibly elegant and delicate script. Bella beamed at him, accepting the gift graciously, and I managed a grateful nod, but the true Major Lysander so wanted to see was whispering in the back of my mind again. 'This vampire can probably tear other vampires apart from a distance.'

"Rumor has it you lived among vampires for approximately two years, or at least knew of the vampire world that long before you were turned. Is that correct, Isabella?" Lysander inquired politely, his eyes distant even as he glanced at her, all of his emotions shifting inward so steadily and fluidly it felt to me like the ocean tide was tugging against me, dragging my empathic sense deeper into his being.

"Yes, that's part of why my newborn state isn't causing any problems," she replied. Lysander nodded.

"I knew of vampires before my change as well," he said. "I was too young to turn when I met my sire, and I was in danger living among humans, so he took me in and raised me. Piers was very compassionate, observant, and wise. When my human family feared and hated me, he easily saw how alike he an I were, each of us Children of Saturn, and he saved my life in more ways than one. He also helped me recall parts of my past I might have otherwise lost in the change, and he helped me track down what information he lacked, so I do have quite the story to tell.

"My birth name is Lysander Croft, named after the character written by the Bard, but my life was completely and utterly bereft of fairies and puckish whimsy. My birthdate alone nearly drove my uncle to kill me before I was born. My mother was a widow with child after the great fire of December 1665 killed my father and burned her home to the ground. This was just outside of Shorpshire, England. My maternal aunt, Mary Ellen Thompson, and her husband Gareth Thompson took my mother in. My uncle quickly came to regret taking her in when my telekinetic gift became active in the womb. In some drunken ramblings overheard by some friends of his, he claimed that his trusted hound was knocked a good couple feet away from my mother by an invisible force when the dog frightened her. I was due any day at that point, after that display of strange power, after a great fire that killed my father, and with the year 1666 just around the corner. My uncle and his friends came to believe I was the Devil's spawn. Aunt Mary Ellen refused to believe their rantings and protected my mother until I was born on December 31, 1665. A day later and they surely would have killed me, and quite possibly my mother as well as there were murmurings of witchcraft for her part in my conception."

Lysander paused, eyes closed against the old but simmering fury he still felt over the cruelty his mother surely endured in that time after the fire, as if the loss of husband and home weren't enough for a pregnant woman, especially in those days.

"I vaguely remember some of those early years. My mother tried her best to reintegrate herself into society, but if I was to be present, any invitations were always declined or rescinded. My uncle blamed me for her ostracism even when he was among those spreading the rumors. Still, my mother and aunt both tried to remind me often that I was loved and the gossip would die down eventually. My mother never saw that day; an unknown illness took her life, June 1679. Devastated, I remember losing control of my power, shattering windows and smashing a large hole through a load-bearing interior wall. The house didn't collapse, but after my aunt once again talked my uncle out of killing me, it was decided we needed to move far away from the shadows of our past in the hope of a new and better life. We boarded a ship to the New World. We settled in Boston, Massachusetts, and my uncle Gareth and I found work in the dockyards…"

I knew something significant was coming. Not just because of the dread I felt coming from both Lysander and my intuitive Bella, but something about what he said was jogging my memory… another disaster? Boston dockyards, 1679…

"On November 27th, 1679, a fire burned all the docks, warehouses, and eighty houses, not including our new home, but coming perilously close. My aunt was shaken, and she turned her back when my uncle turned on me that time; another fire like that in my proximity was too much. When I saw my uncle charging me with a dirty spade in hand, I ran through the streets as fast as my legs would carry me, but Gareth was a grown man, fast and strong. Whether I ran through the wreckage of the fire or through the busy streets filled with people and horses, he kept gaining. I couldn't go to an officer, as they'd probably side with him, and I didn't dare use the strange power I possessed and feared almost as much as my family did. I knew I couldn't control it. Hearing my uncle closing in, I ducked into an alley, looking around wildly for anyone who might help me. I was stunned when one pair of eyes did meet mine. I recognized him, though I'd only seen him walking the dockyards at night. Desperately trying to call for help with my eyes, not daring to shout lest my uncle hear me, I was relieved when his eyes, still holding my gaze, widened with shock. At the exact same moment that I heard my uncle turning into the alley, the man ran into the tavern behind him so quickly he became naught but a blur.

"'Pardon me, sir,' My uncle's voice made me jump. I whirled around to see him breathing heavily, looking right at me, but he looked concerned. 'I'm looking for my nephew. My dog ran off a while ago and my nephew took off after him. The dog will find his way home just fine, but my nephew is still quite young, and we've lived here but a few months.' I can remember gaping at him for a moment, struggling for what to say, but after a moment I realized my uncle and I were of the same height, and my hair was no longer clinging to my sweaty brow, but hanging neatly down past my shoulders. 'I haven't seen any young lads or dogs come through here, no,' I managed to blurt out to my uncle. My voice sounded the same, but my uncle took no notice. He left the alley the way he came and I stared after him until cold, hard hands grabbed me from behind and lifted me off the ground. The next thing I knew, I was cradled in the arms of the man I'd seen moments before, and he was running at inhuman speed to what destination I knew not.

"Before I knew it, he was setting me back on my feet in a warm and comfortable drawing room, furnished and decorated with understated elegance the likes of which I'd never seen. So distracted by my surroundings was I that I momentarily forgot how I came to be there. Those cold, hard hands were on my shoulders then, turning me so that I was looking into a mirror hung on the wall. I recoiled. Where I stood, I saw the man's twin brother. Some details weren't quite the same, but you had to look closely to catch the flaws.

"'I'm not going to harm you,' the man finally said to me. 'You need to try your best to calm down. I believe your panicked state triggered your gift.' I stared at him, unable to find an acceptable verbal response to that. I knew I had a great many questions to ask the man, but when at last I opened my mouth to speak, he raised a hand to silence me. 'I will explain everything when you change back. We cannot risk someone else seeing this. I was very nearly spotted by your uncle after you morphed. Just think what conclusions he might have jumped to had he seen both of us.' Feeling strangely safe with this man I'd never properly met, my panic subsided, but the mention of my uncle caused a surge of anger in me, and then as quickly as I registered that emotion, it was siphoned away and replaced with a feeling of calm that seemed to be seeping into my body from an external source. 'That is my gift you feel. Do not worry, my boy,' he said. 'I would rather you calm yourself without my influence, but I will help as needed. Focus on what you felt the moment you shifted, and we will reverse each emotion as we encounter it.' Looking back into the mirror, I did as instructed, and after a minute or two of concentration, I could feel myself shrinking back down to my own size."

What were the odds? No wonder he couldn't seem to resist barbing me here and there, playing with my gift. The first Saturno executed was an empath. I shared a gift with his sire.

"Piers went on to tell me he'd been watching me since the day I started work at the docks. In a moment when I thought I was alone, he'd witnessed my attempt to use my telekinesis to move a heavy sack I couldn't carry on my own. I'd been desperate to win my uncle's approval somehow. He told me all about himself: He was approximately four-hundred years old, a vampire, gifted with telekinesis himself as well as the empathic power he'd already demonstrated. He told me about the vampire world, the Volturi, preying on the cruel or dying as often as he could manage, and about Children of Saturn. Back then, Saturnos were revered legends, not feared freaks among monsters. He'd been watching me, planning to take me away when the time was right. Witnessing the manifestation of my second gift, he knew I was another Saturno. He said could teach me to wield my gifts properly, in a safe environment. With my uncle out to kill me, he knew the time had come. I would live with him, posing as his own son among humans, learning to control my powers and growing up in a home where I would be cared for and protected, taking as much or as little time as I needed to decide if I wanted to be turned. I agreed.

"We moved to Ipswich, a small town in Massachusetts, and Piers did just as he promised. Being telekinetic himself, he easily made those lessons fun and intriguing, never leaving me with feelings of shame or fear. I was simply training another muscle, just as I did in the physical training he gave me, seeing that I was well fed and healthy through it all so I could grow strong. The morphing was much more difficult to master, as he could only observe and theorize while I tried to get a feel for it. My voice never changed, so I had to practice vocal mimicry, and the superficial aspect was also a challenge. At first I could only transform into him, and only when he was in sight, but one day when I was seventeen, I was particularly frustrated while out repairing our twelve-foot fence. My thoughts and emotions took a terrible turn and I suddenly morphed into my uncle. Knowing I'd morphed but not knowing how I looked, I went inside to look in the mirror, cracking the glass with a short burst of power that broke through in my shock. Piers felt my emotions spiraling out of control and came running just in time. Desperately trying to morph back, I'd grabbed a knife. Piers used his own power to disarm me before he grabbed me and surrounded me in calm and comfort. I'd morphed again by the time he released me, and I apologized for nearly spilling my blood in my distress, explaining that in my panicked state I thought a physical wound might be enough to reverse the morphing. He shook his head wordlessly and helped me up, turning me to face the cracked mirror again. I still hadn't morphed back. I'd morphed into my mother, the way she looked the day she died. Before I could become too distracted by my female form, Piers simply asked me to think of why I would first turn into my uncle, and then into my mother…"

While Lysander paused, lost in thought, I experienced a clear flashback to those first months after Alice brought me to Carlisle. I'd slipped again, and instead of reacting angrily, Carlisle asked me to think about why I slipped, as I hadn't been all that thirsty. No, I'd let my mind wander back into my worst, most repulsive memories. I had dwelt too long in the memory of the monster I'd truly been. Doubting I'd ever be able to escape that past, I'd snapped. 'No,' I told myself, 'You'll never escape it. You'll never be like them, never good enough, always the weak link.' The voice in my head laughed at me, taunting me. 'Remember when you were strong? So strong you become a legend? Everyone feared the vampire countless others failed to defeat, and now you're just a weak failure.' I grabbed a human and sank my teeth into their flesh before I even realized what I was doing. Later that day I was a dry-sobbing mess on the floor, begging Alice and all the others for forgiveness. Knowing where my mind had gone, Bella climbed into my lap, turning from Lysander for a moment to straddle my legs and lift my eyes up to hers. I knew what she saw there. I could always feel it when he came forward. The Major wasn't only brought forward by anger, but whenever I felt that I or anyone I cared for was too vulnerable. It was like I told Eleazar: The Major was my original shield.

"Don't do this to yourself," Bella whispered, loud enough for Lysander to hear, but not by much. "You have another shield now, remember? I'll always keep you safe, even from yourself. I promise."

"My apologies, Major," Lysander murmured behind her, keeping his eyes down but leaning to the side so I could clearly see his face over Bella's shoulder. "I would never try to draw you out this way, especially not with your young mate present. I hadn't considered the fact that you might not need your gift to know how I felt then. I didn't even know you responded to anything but outside threats."

"You heard me tell him he has my shield now," Bella said without breaking eye contact with me. "You might say the Major is what he morphs into whenever any situation overwhelms his base personality." As I felt the Major withdraw again, Bella slid back into her seat and took my hand. "And before you ask, I noticed the distinction before he told me."

"I'm sure you did, Isabella," he replied, smiling softly. "I assume you both, in your own way, have already deduced from my story thus far what state of mind I found myself in. A rush of insecurity made me doubt my progress and my future, and the feeling grew until it turned into self-loathing, which made me morph into my uncle, and upon seeing his image in the mirror that loathing turned to longing and deep despair, so I morphed into my mother as soon as Piers took the remaining anger away. I broke down and cried while Piers held me, gradually morphing back into myself as I reminded myself she was long gone. Piers was nearly chanting in my ear, 'It wasn't your fault,' over and over until I began to believe him again, until I thought of how saddened she would be to see me mourning her so, and how happy she would be to know I was living with someone who understood and cared for me in her place.

"Ten years after that day, I was still human and still living with Piers, but he had to avoid the public eye more and more as I aged and he did not, frozen forever at the age of forty-two. We'd moved twice more as I grew, trying to keep one foot in society while remaining on guard. Still, it was only a matter of time before the gossip turned speculative, and then dangerous. It was 1692, and the witch trials were frightening people in every town, making them doubt and betray even their closest friends, and the carefully reclusive life we led backfired. Some of the town drunks, more foolish than brave, rode to our house together and threw bottles of ink at me when I opened the door just enough to politely greet them. Momentarily blinded by the ink and cut by the shards of glass, I recoiled. I should've attempted morphing into an older version of Piers before answering the door, but I had not, and I gave them the opening they sought. Barging in, they got a very good look at Piers when he came to check on me, their jaws going slack when their suspicions were confirmed: Piers couldn't possibly be a normal human. He wasn't aging. The drunkards fled as abruptly as they'd entered. They would return, however, and when they returned they would bring reinforcements.

"When Piers grabbed me with a little too much force, I thought he was about to just pick me up and run, but he didn't. I could just make out the words, 'I'm sorry, but the choice has been made for you,' before he bit me. In the seconds before the burn of the venom overwhelmed me, I was aware of Piers carefully laying my body down right in the mess of ink and glass by the door. He told me later that when my screams began, he ran to fetch his old crossbow before returning to me. Even my ears could hear the mob approaching, but I couldn't focus on any of it as the venom spread. Piers bent over me enough to let his hair fall into the ink, wiping off any that touched his skin, only staining his hair. When the mob was in sight, he threw open the door and sent out a wave of fear-tinged concern so strong it momentarily brought me out of my pain, but I sank back into it in seconds. His face a mask of agony and fury, he stormed out to confront the mob of thirty-something townspeople, aiming his crossbow wildly at them and gesturing to my body visible in the doorway. 'Demons!' He cried, 'Witches, Satan's minions, all of you! What have you done to my boy?!' Just like that, the angry mob halted. They listened and craned their necks to look at me. There I was, covered in the ink and glass the men had thrown, screaming as if some dark force was ripping my insides out. No one would even remember seeing the youth of my sire with their own eyes. My cries of agony had them flinching back and cowering in terror. The drunks were among the mob, and when the horrified mob turned on them, two of them vomited where they stood while the others went deathly pale. The tables had turned, and they knew they had to divert blame, and fast.

"'We din't know t'was more than ink!' One of them screeched in desperation. 'We found the bottles…' The next drunk had no ideas. 'We… we was havin' drinks with some good fellows in the next town over, and we found them with a bit of parchment by the gallows. Thought a scribe'd left it all there after a hangin', and thought we'd might s'well save it from the rain.' The men couldn't come up with more than that, but it was enough. Piers knew exactly where to take the story from there. He told me after my change was complete that he never would have said it had my life not been at stake, but it was them or us.

"'You degenerate, putrid, fools!' Piers bellowed, regaining everyone's rapt attention even as my screams made them continually recoil. 'Did you not hear of the witch twins they captured near dawn this morning? The boy who can steal your senses and his sister who can cause agony such as this? The girl must have bewitched the items you stole before they locked her away! They are both of them so feared that they are scheduled not merely to hang, but to burn this very night! You brought the Devil's magic here and you torture my son with it!' He raised his loaded crossbow and aimed it straight at the nearest of the drunks, but he didn't shoot. When my next scream pierced the air, Piers lowered the bow and doubled over as if he'd taken a knife to the heart. 'Curse you, foolish bastards,' he hissed. 'Damn you all to Hell for this.'

"Piers turned his back on the mob and ran back to me at human speed, slamming the door behind him. The mob grabbed the drunks and dragged them back down the road, whispering about evil twins and burning. Meanwhile, I too was burning in my own way. Piers threw some clothing, money, and his most cherished books into a sac, uttered another soft apology, and lifted me up into his arms as soon as the mob was out of earshot. Using his gift to soothe and quiet me as much as possible, he carried me out the door and off into the night… even so, luck was just not on our side that night."

"Eleazar and the other Volturi Guards," Bella murmured, venom tears shining in her eyes. We already knew how this tale was going to end. Lysander nodded somberly.

"Piers told me later that he recognized Eleazar and knew of his very special gift. He felt the shock and wonderment, the recognition. Eleazar knew what we were, but neither party could stop to talk. I was undergoing my change, and much to the dismay of my sire, they were rushing to save Jane and Alec from execution, as Aro desperately wanted them in his Guard. The Guards we faced sped away and we continued in the opposite direction, but not before Piers looked back over his shoulder, cursing when he heard humans shrieking in sudden pain, certain Jane was being dragged out to the pyre somewhere off in the distance. He'd hated blaming the twins to save me as it was, and in that moment he knew it was only a matter of time before he saw Volterran vampires again. Word of his accusations had surely reached the crowd at the pyre. He had officially crossed Aro Volturi.

"With help from Piers, it took me about nine weeks to gain full control of my thirst, and as it turned out, that was all the time we'd have. Piers had prepared me for the day. I detested it, but I knew refusal to do as he wished would only add to his suffering, so I listened. Piers quizzed me on my memory of human life, and on how to use my gifts with just the right touch. We reviewed discreet hunting practices, discussed how to evade the Volturi as long as possible. He told me to morph often, if only to keep changing my scent trail. He set some brilliantly simple noise traps all around our location. He had me run the full perimeter so I would know when to jump, keeping the attention of our hunters away from me. Finally, we heard them. The traps sounded all around us, but we could hear where they had left the largest gap, and Piers ran toward them at just the right angle to make them separate and leave me a clear opening. Though it killed me to do so, I fled as instructed, morphing every mile I ran so Demetri couldn't follow me. I thought it was safe enough to stop in Plymouth, not in my natural form of course, but far enough out of range that I could slip into an inn and observe the townspeople for a while, learning new morphs. I tried to stick to the diet Piers followed of the sickly, the scoundrels, but nothing seemed to truly satisfy me. I swear, I could feel it. I could feel it the moment they burned him, and it crushed a great deal of my resolve, so in an effort to keep myself in check until I could be the kind of vampire Piers would be proud of, I ran to the ocean and found my first cliffside cave. Sometimes I'll venture on land and find a rapist or murder to drain, but most days I settle for swimmers, surfers, and the victims of shipwrecks. To any humans aware of the deaths, I'm no more than a shark."

After a beat of awed silence, I felt Bella's emotions take a sharp turn toward guilt and fear, and I knew what was coming just as much as I knew I had to let it play out.

"I'm so sorry, Lysander. I… I'm really not sure why you told Annie you would help us. Fellow Saturno or not, you've had a target on your back since the Saturno hunts began, and now that you finally found a lifestyle that's keeping you safe, you want to join a handful of rebels defying the Volturi? Let me tell you something: for all her infamy, Jane turned out to be a wonderful person at heart and Aro ripped her head off before our eyes when she tried to leave with us. Aro is a Saturno too. All this time the hunts have been his way of securing his power. Demetri? He's dead. I took off his head and Jasper burned it before we left. With your morphing, your safety is virtually guaranteed at this point." Bella seemed to have more to add, but Lysander was giving her that same soft smile again, and the twinkle of gratitude in his eyes was unmistakable, bringing Bella's long-winded warning to a halt.

"You aren't telling me anything Annabeth did not already tell me, Isabella. I am glad that her assessment of your character was accurate as well. Your mate is an empath like my sire, with experiences that help him understand me without use of his gift, and you have my sire's personality, even more so than Carlisle Cullen, or so I've been told. I understand you feel responsible for what's happening, but I do have my own reasons to fight. You are clearly determined to protect your mate, your family, and your friends with everything you have in you, but this is bigger than that. Carlisle Cullen is widely known for not only his diet, but for his choice to only change the dying. His chosen path is to give the dying more time, to give them a chance at happiness. Whether you made your choice consciously or not, your chosen path is clearly to give others the freedom to live as they choose. I respect you enough to be completely honest with you: I doubt we'll always get along, and I don't see myself forming any close bonds within this alliance, but I see too much of Piers in you to ignore. I admire you enough to follow you, as I wish to this day I had followed him."

It was taking a positively Herculean effort on Bella's part to not launch herself across the small space and hug Lysander, but he was obviously not the type, so I pulled her back to me, holding her unflinchingly while her unchecked newborn strength nearly cracked my skin.


	27. Ricochet

♀︎(Bella's POV)

Stowe, Vermont. The Cullens built their own sprawling chalet in an isolated wood at the base of Mount Mansfield decades before I was born. Some would argue we had a death wish, making a property Aro was fully aware of our new home base, but we'd all agreed this was another one of those 'the closer you are to danger, the farther you are from harm' cases. Peter and Alice had confirmed it was the best base from which to do our recruiting. Aro had already done his due diligence, sending some of his Guard out to spread anti-Saturno propaganda as he had done centuries before. We knew some of the vampires we tried to recruit would hesitate, wondering if I was the crazed newborn anarchist Aro was painting me to be, but I had Carlisle Cullen and Major Jasper Whitlock on my side, and that was enough to make almost any vampire stop and listen. Gregarious covens and reclusive vampires would put their trust in civil and pacifistic Carlisle; powerful covens and combative nomads would answer the Major's call to arms. We only had to fear those allies who only gave their allegiance to the highest bidder. Sadly, we recruited more than one fair-weather friend. Worse, we were stupid enough to assign them the same post.

"I know it sounds backwards," Carlisle had sighed, pinching the bridge if his nose like Edward used to, so accustomed to fidgeting like a human for show, "but Alistair did agree to help us. He could have refused and stayed out of all this, but I'm the closest friend he's ever had and he agreed to help us like a true friend. Yes, he has always been skittish, but that is exactly why I believe he can help guard your mother and step-father, Bella. He's a tracker, but instead of using his gift to hunt, he has always used it to map out the best way to flee an approaching enemy. If Guards approach your family, he'll pinpoint their location long before anyone else would be able to do so. Amun, Kebi, Benjamin, and Tia are all accustomed to living in sunny climates; they'll be able to fight off small hunting parties with little risk of exposure, and Alistair will be able to lead everyone to safety if they are unable to do so. Alice and Irwin have to be available to help all of our friends and allies at any time. Alistair has the best chance of evading attackers if teleportation is unavailable for any span of time."

"And in the event of the worst case scenario, if they have to escape, then they'll grab Renee and Phil and run?" I asked, "No hesitating or tiptoeing around them for secrecy?"

"Those are their orders, yes," Carlisle answered. "If we must reveal our kind to your family, we will, and we'll address that problem as we are able... I must tell you, however, none of our allies will break our laws for anyone outside your family. We are all of us agreed that some laws may be bent and even broken in times of war, but anarchy is not an option. I know you have been worried about Angela Weber since Aro threatened to harm her, but the wolves have taken full responsibility for her."

"I know, I know..." I had already argued with Jasper over what could be done for Angela. "I don't like it, but I understand."

"If it helps, I doubt Aro will act on his threat against her," Carlisle tried to reassure me. Jasper had said the same.

"Bigger fish to fry," I sighed. "A couple dozen vampires, seventeen wolves last I heard, and my parents... Angela's insignificant by comparison."

"Aro is ruthless, but he is proud and theatrical, and this war is political. No vampires uninvolved in this war would care about the assassination of an unconnected human girl. It's a small comfort, but I am certainly comforted by the knowledge that Aro's kills need to mean something. If he kills needlessly, he risks exposing his whole corrupt regime to the world."

So that was how a skittish Alistair, surly Amun, submissive Kebi, powerful Benjamin, and loyal Tia all ended up in Florida, guarding my blissfully ignorant and pregnant mother and her devil-may-care husband. What were we thinking?

"Benjamin, Tia, and Amun took out the three Guards they saw, but there's another small group of Guards hunting nearby." Five days after my talk with Carlisle, Volturi Guards appeared in Florida. Alice and Irwin came to teleport us to Florida, believing we could still keep my family safe and in the dark if we helped Alistair and the Egyptians destroy the remaining Guards before they reached Jacksonville. "They stopped to hunt near St. Augustine, about forty miles out," Alice explained as we gathered around Irwin. "I can't see beyond their chosen prey right now. They aren't making any other concrete decisions. Kebi was hurt, so Amun is refusing to pursue them."

"Guards first, then we'll deal with him. Let's go," Jasper bit out, his eyes still clear but his voice commanding. He, Carlisle, Esme, and I latched onto Irwin and I amplified easily, allowing Irwin to drop us in Florida in just over four seconds. As soon as we landed, Irwin went back for Alice.

"Almost everyone else is in motion," Alice said, her eyes unfocused as she scanned the future. "We'll waste too much time trying to teleport to anyone running or hunting." Jasper growled in frustration.

"Six is enough this time. As soon as we're done here, we're drafting a strict hunting schedule for everyone," he said, "and everyone not staying in Forks or Stowe will be given a checkpoint they'll report to regularly."

Alice could see only four Guards remaining in the area, a little over a mile from our landing point, hunting humans from the narrow shadows cast by the afternoon sun. We quickly found their scent trails. We broke into pairs when their trails parted, leaving only one Guard unchecked while we disposed of the other three. Jasper and I reached our target first, making short work of the distracted male and dumping his broken body into a trash can before setting it alight. We found Irwin and Alice finishing off a much larger Guard beside the body of a dead human male, the strong smell of liquor on him masking the smell of what little blood trickled from his limp form.

"Burn the Guard in a trash can," Jasper ordered. "The police will think some vandal set a few fires for fun."

"He shattered his arms," Alice noted from where she knelt over the dead man. "We can't leave the body like this."

"I'll take him," Irwin offered, having dumped the vampire's parts in a trash can a block away, the purple-tinted smoke visible from where we stood. Irwin scooped the man into his arms and teleported away. Alice gasped, clearly alarmed by a sudden vision.

"Alice?" Jasper rushed forward to take hold of her shoulders as I'd often seen him do in the past, instinctively grounding her while her vision carried her elsewhere. Before Alice had a chance to speak, Irwin returned and took Jasper's place holding her. Alice shrugged him off.

"I'll go help Carlisle and Esme," she blurted as her eyes cleared. "Take Bella and Jasper to Jacksonville now! Renee and Phil heard Alistair and Amun fighting. They're going to get hurt, go!"

Irwin grabbed us without preamble and teleported. We landed behind a dumpster several yards from my mom's condo. Hearing the loud crack of one vampire striking another, we leapt over the fence behind us and ran to break up the fight. Amun had Alistair pinned, but he was struggling to maintain his hold on the tracker. Venom trickled from large cracks around Amun's arm at the shoulder; Alistair had nearly torn the limb free. Hovering a few feet away, Kebi stared at her mate's wound, rubbing a fresh scar around her wrist. Benjamin and Tia weren't visible, but we could hear and smell them coming closer.

"That's enough," Jasper growled quietly, his tone commanding enough to make the brawling vampires spring apart, but too late.

"... No, go on home. Jen said she heard a gator over here. We heard some weird noises too, I'm just checking it out." That was Phil. He was approaching the fence behind the dumpster.

"Amun, Alistair, that's enough!" Benjamin spoke too loudly as he and Tia arrived on the scene. He stomped one foot hard as he said 'enough', creating a long fissure in the ground between the two vampires.

"Did you feel that?" It was Renee. Of course it was. "Phil, that was an earthquake, it's not a gator! Come back inside."

"This isn't Arizona, hun," Phil said. I could hear the smile in his voice, and I could imagine him using the same fondly teasing tone every time my mom told him some magazine article said she wasn't ready for her new baby.

"Move," I hissed to everyone as Phil began walking the length of the fence, my mom heaving a sigh and following a few steps behind. In a flash, everyone was either hidden behind a bush or standing in the shade far from the crack in the ground.

"I told you! Look! Look at the ground!" Renee waddled around Phil, one hand supporting her back while she gestured wildly at the ground with the other. My breath caught and my eyes stung with venom tears that wouldn't fall. She looked so happy, more beautiful than I remembered, and her belly was full and tanned where it peeked out from under her small maternity top. She smelled like apricots and toasted coconut. I could hear the baby's heartbeat thrumming beneath her own.

While I stared at my mom, she and Phil stared at the crack Benjamin had left in the ground. Irwin's phone buzzed. Jasper growled loudly at the sound of seven unexpected vampires fast approaching. "Hired by the Volturi," Irwin called out, also throwing caution to the wind. The time for discretion had passed. We had been played. The Guards had been disposable decoys, meant to keep us busy while these outside vampires executed the hit. A faded human memory came screeching to the fore: the van Edward stopped. I leapt into the sun and tackled my mom and Phil gently to the ground. The sun shattered off my skin and brought out the flecks of green in my mom's wide eyes.

"Stay down, Mom," I spoke before she could question me. "Yes, it's me, Bella. I'm not dead. Just let me save you and Phil now, okay?" I didn't wait for an answer. I glanced at Phil to make sure he'd heard me, then I stood to take in the fight breaking out around me.

Irwin latched onto the largest enemy vampire and teleported. When he didn't come back right away, I assumed he'd gone to collect Alice, Carlisle, and Esme. Jasper was black-eyed and raging, fighting two of the remaining six at once. Tia produced an old lighter and Benjamin shaped the flame into a fiery whip, lashing at the horde. As I expected, Irwin reappeared with Alice, Carlisle, and Esme, but they appeared right in the path of Benjamin's flame whip. They all four dove away, but Esme was struck in the back. Carlisle rolled with her to extinguish her burning clothes and he pulled her further from the fray. Witnessing this, Amun grabbed Benjamin's arm and tried to drag him away. When he put out the flame but refused to flee, Amun whirled until he spotted Irwin. He charged and Kebi followed.

"Get us out of here now," he growled, heaving Irwin off the ground. Alice attacked without hesitation, ripping off Amun's arm. Kebi turned and attacked Alice. I was about to intervene when I heard Phil getting to his feet.

"No!" I cried out, "Stay down, out of the way!" They needed to be teleported to safety, but Irwin was fighting off Amun. Alistair! He was supposed to take them to safety! I turned in time to see Alistair sprinting down the street, away from the fight. I risked abandoning my post to run to Jasper as he ripped off the head of his third opponent. I latched onto him and amplified with all my might. "Sedate them!"

On cue, Jasper sent out a wave of mind-numbing lethargy that struck everyone. Amun and Kebi wavered, backing away from Irwin and Alice. Alistair slowed dramatically and finally stopped running. Renee and Phil both slumped to the ground, asleep. I could only hope the baby would be okay. To my horror and dismay, I spotted a few other humans asleep on the ground or slumped against the windows through which they'd been watching us. How many humans had seen us fighting? Why hadn't I thought of this tactic before the fight started? I'd been too distracted by the sight of my mom. Her presence had given me tunnel vision, not for long, but long enough to let this disaster unfold. Benjamin and Tia tore apart one more enemy vampire as I looked around, seizing the last one and holding him securely between them. Kebi whimpered and set to reattaching Amun's arm.

"Well, you know what we have to do now, right?" Amun said cooly, glaring at us. "Just look at all these human witnesses. You did say only those two were to be considered exceptions to the law, did you not?" Amun stepped toward my mom and I hissed a warning. He shot me a condescending smile and walked to the nearest unfamiliar human, pointing at the man's body. "Are you fighting for freedom or anarchy, little Saturno?" A human behind me cried out and I turned to see Alistair drinking from a half-conscious woman. I stared, frozen. Did these humans really have to die because of our mistakes? Because they saw us for five minutes? We certainly couldn't turn them all. Amun snorted disdainfully. When I turned back to him, he snapped the neck of the man at his feet, not drinking from him. Two down. I couldn't move. I couldn't think.

"Run, Saturno. Take Mommy and run," the male held by Benjamin and Tia taunted, a smirk like Amun's forming on his face. "More Guards are on their way now. They'll burn everything. They'll clean up your mess."

"Aro sent all of you to start this fight," I hissed, advancing on the vampire. "He already sent Guards to die so we would walk right into this trap."

"You think those Guards you killed while they hunted were just sacrifice pawns? You think those Guards who came here first were supposed to die? They came to kill your family and wait for your retaliation. The Guards out hunting were supposed to attack like we did. We were called to action when the traitor double-crossed us."

Traitor? There had been a different plan? They'd expected to kill my family without issue and wait for us? "Benjamin," Jasper spoke, his tone deadly. "How exactly was Kebi harmed?"

"We were patrolling in pairs," Benjamin answered. "The attacking Guards came across Amun and Kebi first. When Tia and I reached them, two of them held Kebi, one of them taking her hand off at the wrist while another questioned Amun."

"What did you hear?" Jasper demanded.

"We only heard them say, 'Where is the tracker? Will he fight?'" Amun started to retreat, but Jasper was on him in a second. Alice tackled Kebi before she could retaliate again.

"And why were they asking you about Alistair, Amun?" Jasper asked, digging his fingers into the healing flesh where Amun's arm had only just been reattached.

"I know nothing of your wild mate," Amun growled defiantly. "I only know what I will do for mine, and what we believe." Amun hissed when Jasper applied more pressure to his shoulder. "We were told you fought for justice, that you did not seek to overthrow our government altogether, but the first thing you do is order us to break the law for the newborn. What did you expect? I told them I would step aside and let them have the girl's family if they spared my coven. We will still fight for you if you uphold the law."

"Do not speak for me," Benjamin bit out, his boyish face contorted in disgust and anger.

"Or me," Tia added. "Benjamin has only ever been a prize to you, and I an acceptable addition. You lecture us, but you have kept us hidden from Aro. You are a covetous coward, Amun."

The vampire held between Benjamin and Tia laughed harshly. "He's the only one of you who hasn't been taken by this Saturno's madness." I faced him, but my retort died on my lips. His hands were both balled into fists, his eyes on Phil's unconscious body. Phil's lips were blue. It was only then that I realized I couldn't hear his breath... or his heart.

"No!" I ran to Phil, followed closely by Carlisle. I automatically started pumping his heart as soon I hit my knees beside him. It took me only a second to realize there was no point, but I kept going until Carlisle's hands closed around mine.

"He suffocated, Bella. He's gone. I'm sorry..."

I shifted over to my mom and I kissed her forehead, laying my hand atop her swollen belly. A small sob escaped me when I felt a little kick. "I'm sorry..." I looked up at Irwin. "Do you know if teleportation is safe for the baby?"

"Perfectly safe," Alice assured me softly. I nodded.

"Take her."

Irwin took my mom's unconscious body from me and teleported away with her. I turned back to the vampire held by Benjamin and Tia.

"Kill him."

Benjamin and Tia both ripped off the arms they held without missing a beat, methodically dismantling the rest of his body. I turned to Jasper, still in position over Amun. I nodded. Jasper nodded grimly and beheaded Amun with almost elegant skill. Before Kebi could even work up a full growl, Alice grabbed her arms and I leapt forward to behead her myself.

Once all the vampire bodies were burned, we gathered the bodies of the various sedated humans in the immediate area and piled them together in the backyard of one of the nearby houses. The Guards on their way to this little corner of Jacksonville were a cleaning crew meant to handle this kind of thing, but it felt like something I needed to do. I needed to accept responsibility. I needed a reminder why I could never act so recklessly again. I needed a reminder that I was no longer human. I was a vampire fighting in a war. This would be the first of many battles, and win or lose, there would always be a price to pay. To these humans, I would forever be in debt. I poured lighter fluid over their bodies and lit the pyre. The column of smoke that rose above them was an unforgiving gray. The purple smoke lingering in the air blocked the sun. Glittering was not permitted in graveyards.

Irwin carried us all back to Vermont, everyone but Alistair. When we executed Amun, he ran, and ran, and ran... He was a coward, but he knew how to survive.


	28. Spirit Guide

♀︎(Bella's POV)

The Denalis were stationed in the Cullen house in Forks. Annie and a nomad named Garrett were looking for Jillian, the final Saturno. Peter, Char, Maria, Jude, and Alanna were back in Italy, observing the Volturi and devising offensive strategies and tactics. Lysander was also in Italy, masking the presence of the others by frequently morphing and leaving foreign scent trails everywhere. Zafrina, Kachiri, and Senna of the Amazon coven teamed up with two nomads, Mary and Randall, to patrol Jacksonville in case any more Volterran allies tried to stir up more trouble. Benjamin and Tia were channeling their grief and anger over what Amun had done into a new assignment: They were accompanying Siobhan, Liam, and Maggie of the Irish coven around the world, all of them trying to dispel the rumors the Volturi had spread about me. The disaster in Jacksonville had only driven away two allies: European nomads Charles and Makenna swore they had no intention of betraying us as Amun and Alistair had, but they refused to fight beside us while we broke exposure laws and sheltered humans. We wished them well and they wished us luck. All of our allies were equipped with new cellphones. Carlisle purchased them all as soon as he finished tending to my mom, programming them and passing them along to Alice and Irwin for distribution. My mom was unharmed, and her unborn baby was safe and healthy, but we knew she'd be traumatized and terribly confused when she awoke. I could still clearly remember Edward's gaze across the parking lot right before Tyler's van came screeching toward me; my mom would never forget the moment her not-so-dead daughter leapt out of the shadows to protect her, sparkling like a thousand diamonds in the Florida sun.

"Bella, she's waking up." Carlisle was ready to tend to her medical needs, and Rose had appointed herself my mom's personal guardian, but my mom needed to see my face when she woke. She had only met the Cullen's briefly, and that had been after my funeral, when she believed Alice and I had both been lost in a fatal car accident. Rose left the room as I entered, Jasper following me in and moving to stand out of sight. Looking at my mom curled up in bed, wearing fresh new maternity clothing Rose and I had dressed her in, I thought of all the years I'd referred to her by her given name and winced. There before me, with my half-sibling still growing in her belly, was my mother. Most vampires I knew barely remembered their human lives, and most of those who could remember their human parents looked back in anger, or with indifference. It was probably easier that way, to leave the mortal dead behind, but in this case a clean break was no longer and option. Because of me, my mom had been dragged into the supernatural world… into a supernatural war. That fact should've filled me with so much more guilt than it did, but selfish as it was, I was glad I'd been given a second chance. I hated the fact that I was thinking in such a way, and I had yet to confess my feelings to anyone but Jasper, but I was happy to have my mom back. I only dreaded having to tell her why I reappeared when I did, and why I'd been unable to save Phil…

"Stop beating yourself up over it," Jasper murmured softly. "You've missed your mother. I'm sure you miss your father and your human friends too. You did a great job pretending you were leaving nothing behind, but that show was mostly for the Volturi; had you even hesitated to sever your ties to the human world, they would have killed us all. You have so much more love in your heart than you've allowed yourself to remember."

"I don't want to change her," I whispered anxiously. "She's pregnant! She's really ready to be a mother now, and it's not like we can change the baby! Before we left, before we staged my death, things were finally falling into place for her. She was happy and finally ready live a mature adult life. I can't…"

"I know. That's why you need to remember how little time you have left with her. You've got her back, but for a limited time. Don't waste that time beating yourself up over feelings you can't control."

My mom stirred and groaned softly. I started toward the bed, but I stopped myself a couple feet short, wary of overwhelming her. Jasper remained out of sight. "Mom?" I whispered, "Mom, it's Bella." Her eyes fluttered slowly open. "You're safe. The baby is fine. You remember Doctor Cullen, right? He took care of you after… after you passed out."

"Bella?" Her voice cracked. She didn't move, but her gaze was a tangible thing, skittering all over my body, lingering on my face, then scanning me from top to toe again. "Bella? How… H-How?" Her lower lip trembled and tears welled in her eyes, infusing the air with a subtle saltiness I could taste.

"The accident was staged, Mom. Alice and I are fine, but we… the Cullens and I… some bad people were after us. They were going to hurt you, us, everyone… we had to do it, Mom. I'm so sorry. We tried to protect you from all of this, but it wasn't enough. We had to come back for you."

"Bella?" My mom blinked and slowly shook her head. "This can't… No, wait…" She absently ran her hands over her belly. "The noise. I remember checking around the dumpster. Phil and I came around the fence. There was nothing there… but then you were there, not alone… there… there were people behind you…" Each breath, each heartbeat came faster and stronger. Her eyes dried as confusion and panic set in. I felt the gentle wave of calm Jasper sent out to take the edge off, but I kept my eyes on my mom. She'd torn her gaze from me, looking down, so I moved closer and carefully sat on the edge of the bed. Her eyes snapped back up to my face.

"I fell down two flights of stairs and through a window. You came to visit me in the hospital. You wanted me to move to Jacksonville with you, but I wanted to stay in Forks."

"With Edward."

"With the Cullens, including Edward, and with Dad. When Edward dumped me and the Cullens left, I got really depressed… You and Dad⏤you and Charlie were so worried⏤but the Cullens came back and I started dating Jasper. Do you remember that?" My mom nodded, her eyes glued to me.

"You look different. Your eyes are gold. Your hair looks thicker. You're even paler than usual, but you don't look sick. Are you wearing gold contacts? Bella… why? What… Phil. Where's Phil?" My mom looked around, her breath quickening. "Where are we? Where's Phil?"

Before I could find words to comfort my mom, I was distracted by a soft, resonant thumping noise emanating from her swollen belly; the baby was responding to her distress, the heartbeats of mother and child accelerating, pounding until a heavy wave of calm blanketed them, putting them back to sleep. My mate's gift rolled off me like water over marble. I felt calm and furious, wounded but somehow invincible. There had been a shift, and without stopping to question it, I stood and left the room without a word.

Jasper followed me as I walked at human speed to Carlisle's office. Moments before we reached the door, I heard three soft thuds⏤Irwin had teleported into the office with two others. When Carlisle opened the door for me, his expression sympathetic, Jasper and I joined Irwin, Alice, and Peter inside. The new arrivals didn't seem alarmed or angry, so I assumed the two seers had come for the conversation to follow. I turned to Carlisle and squared my shoulders. I would not back down again. I had not come to express an opinion. I was issuing and order.

"We're telling my dad and Angela what's happening, and we're hiding them with my mom. Aro will target them, and whether our allies approve or not, it's clearly a safer move to take them now. If we wait to defend them from an attack, we're just spreading our forces thinner than we need to and traumatizing two innocent humans more than necessary. I'm going to Forks to speak to them."

"It's good that you're finally makin' demands, sweet pea," Peter interjected. "You'll need that confidence and conviction going forward, but commanders keep their allies by makin' deals and compromises too. Now, Major, don't go tearin' my arms off when I say this, but as much as Maria's changed, she's still a battle legend in her own right and that mess in Jacksonville gave her some ideas Char and I both agree are pretty inspired. In a nutshell, she thinks we need to take advantage of every skill and weapon at our disposal, including Bella's venom."

"Oh, she thinks those Volterran allies were under Aro's control?" I laughed disparagingly. "That it's too much of a stretch that they'd act like that just because of a few rumors? Sorry…. Really, I'm sorry," I said, instantly regretting my acerbic comment. "I don't mean to sound ungrateful or disrespectful or anything, but we all already came to that conclusion and as great as it sounds in theory, there's just no way we could've held all our attackers still while I bit them and waited to see who felt like talking."

"No. Bitin' is impractical and dangerous," Peter continued. "There's only one of you, after all. You can only do so much. Your venom, however, can replenish itself after being injected or extracted."

"Extracted? Drawn like blood?" I glanced over at Carlisle, confused.

"Needles won't pierce your skin now, but venom pooling in your mouth or dripping from a wound can be collected," Carlisle murmured, clearly deep in thought. He turned back to Peter. "Collected and repurposed? Made into a weapon of some sort? Those under Aro's control won't willingly absorb or ingest Bella's venom; I'm sure he's told them to avoid any exposure to it."

"Maria suggested coatin' knives," Peter offered, watching Jasper and me warily. "Bite or tear to make an open wound, then stab to force the venom into their system. I thought some custom paintball guns might do the trick; we'd have to make the bullet casings strong enough to hold the venom, but fragile enough to break upon impact. With paintball guns, we'd have a number of target areas to choose from⏤open wounds, mouths, eyes⏤and we could shoot from a distance, improvin' our chances of avoidin' a real fight with the target altogether."

Jasper's hand was on my shoulder, gripping tightly, but he'd remained silent throughout the exchange. When I turned to him, his expression was ambivalent. "I hate the thought of using you in such a way," he finally murmured, moving his hands to cup my face tenderly. "It's an awful mess we're in, but I can't imagine…" Jasper struggled for words for a moment, then he growled softly in frustration and pulled me into a crushing hug. His hair brushed my brow as he shook his head. He wanted to say no.

"But?" I prompted. He sighed and shook his head infinitesimally. I pulled back just enough to look up into his dark eyes before I continued, "But if it weren't me, if it was anyone else, you'd approve. It will give us a great advantage in battle, won't it? If it weren't me…?"

"Do it," Jasper choked out. "Not just to save your human family and friends, but for all of us. Fight poison with poison, before Aro controls too many." I nodded, hugging my mate close again.

"We could save lives this way," I quietly agreed. "Freeing instead of destroying, our enemies could surrender and walk away⏤some might even join our side." I pulled away from Jasper and turned to face Peter and Carlisle.

"My dad and Angela will be introduced to our world and hidden from the Volturi and those loyal to Aro. To arm and protect our allies, I will dispense my venom for weaponizing and medicinal use." I felt an odd chill as I remembered addressing the wolf pack similarly before my change. It felt like yesterday and forever ago all at once. As I had shaken Billy's hand that day, I shook Peter's. Carlisle was already gathering syringes.

"Irwin," Carlisle said, "please bring Char, Maria, Jude, and Alanna here."

"Find Lysander too," I interjected. "I know he's been running around alone anyway, but I don't want him to be completely alone in enemy territory." Irwin gave me a warm smile and nodded.

"Annie and Garrett will find Jillian today," Alice told me, taking her mate's hand. "Having our third Saturno will comfort our allies too. Your family will be safe, Bella." I nodded, smiling gratefully, and then Alice and Irwin teleported away. Peter made a quick exit as well, running off toward the garage, taking a shiny black credit card Carlisle offered as he went.

"I want you to know I share your feelings in this matter," Carlisle sighed, approaching me with six large, metal syringes. "It absolutely disgusts me, the mere thought of using you in any way, much less for the crafting of weapons, but I cannot deny the relief I felt at the prospect of saving and sparing our enemies instead of destroying them."

"I understand, Carlisle," I said, forcing a smile.

"We understand," Jasper amended.

"Obviously, harming you to extract the venom is out of the question, so we'll have to collect venom pooling in your mouth. We'll get large quantities faster if you take these with you while you hunt. Don't give over to your instinct completely while you're out there⏤you'll need to draw a sample of venom each time you smell decent prey, before you attack. Go now, both of you. I'll check on your mother…" Carlisle hesitated. "I'm so sorry, sweetheart, about all of this. I should have listened."

"You did," I said softly, shaking my head once. "You listened to me and to everyone else, and you tried to make the best decision."

"Very forgiving and diplomatic, Bella, thank you, but I knew it was a risk…"

"So did I, but I gave in when I could have argued my point further. We all screwed up, and now Phil is dead and a coven was broken… Please, just help me take care of my mom now. I could barely speak to her."

"It will get better, Bella," Carlisle assured me, hugging me gently. "We'll figure it out, sweetheart. Go on with Jasper now. I'll need that venom before you go back to Forks. Your mother will be safe with me. I promise."

When Jasper and I returned from our hunt, venom-filed syringes in hand, we didn't even get a chance to check back in with my mom. When we came close enough the house for Jasper to feel the fear, disgust, and fury flowing out of Carlisle's office, we rushed inside. Irwin and Alice were back with Char, Maria, Jude, and Alanna, but despite the fact that I had not yet been properly introduced to Maria's coven, my eyes went straight to Lysander⏤he was soaking wet, holding a dismembered arm.

I was aware of everyone talking around me, asking all the obvious questions, and I subconsciously absorbed it all. I heard Lysander telling everyone he'd found the arm inside his cave, a clear warning from the Volturi that they'd known his location for who knows how long, possibly since he'd first occupied the cave. Silently observing, I saw another layer to the taunt: Over and over, my mind screamed, 'There's no venom! The arm has completely dried out!' I moved forward without making a conscious choice to do so and the talking around me ceased abruptly. I took hold of the stony arm as if it were made from spun glass; Lysander released it and simply stared as I held the arm to my chest.

"I'm so sorry," I murmured softly. It was Amelia's arm. It had to be. Aro really had scattered her unburned pieces. She would never die. Aro had subjected Tristan's innocent mate to a fate worse than death, just because he wanted Tristan to help him hurt me.

"It's Tristan's mate, Amelia," I announced to the room. "Aro told me he forced Tristan to serve him by tearing her apart and hiding the pieces. They captured Jane because they started to tear Alec apart in front of her; Aro threatened to do the same thing with him. I don't believe he was really going to do that to Alec, but…" I turned to face Jane's mate, addressing him for the first time ever. "If I could've freed her sooner, if she'd met you, she might've escaped with us. Even freed from Aro and Chelsea, she couldn't let them do that to her brother. I'm so sorry…"

"I've heard many accounts of what happened," Jude said softly, his own calming gift reaching out for me. "I know you did everything you could to save her. Aro won't destroy her. He needs her."

"We will find her and take her back," I vowed vehemently. "I'll get her out of there and bring her to you, I promise. With stores of my venom to give out to everyone, we can free her and as many other innocent vampires as possible. I only wish there was a way to help Amelia too."

"When it's over, if we can defeat Aro, we can try to reassemble her," Jasper offered. "We'll leave no stone unturned, you and I will comb through every square inch of Italy if you want to."

"And none would dare get in your way," Maria interjected, giving me the same appraising, approving look she'd given me at the wedding in Volterra. "You're so much like Jasper, Bella. I can already sense it. You're strong enough to survive all of this. We're with you and Jasper to the end."

Official introductions were made at last, but I was more anxious than ever to make sure my dad and Angela were safe. I also needed to check on the pack. I'd had little contact with them since I'd returned to the States, only by phone. Jake… I had to save my best friend too.

"Long time, no see," Jake was waiting for us when we teleported to the boundary line. I ran into his arms as soon and my feet hit the ground. Okay, he smelled horrible to me, and I to him, but our friendship had always and would always transcend time, space, and specie. I was prepared to ask him about the new wolves, how everyone was getting on with the Denalis, anything to avoid talking about Jacksonville, but I was immediately distracted by an unfamiliar scent on Jake's shirt.

"What's that?" I asked, openly and deliberately sniffing his shoulder again. Jake looked over my head and nodded in greeting to Jasper. Irwin had already teleported away. "That's definitely a human scent. Who smells like lavender and lemon?"

"You can smell that through the wolf stench?" Jasper laughed.

"Yeah, okay," Jake snorted. "Act like that's a big deal when I can smell a human scent through your stink too…" Jake trailed off and his smile fell. "Sorry, Bella. I guess that must be your mom⏤okay that's worse⏤I really didn't mean to bring any of that up."

"Just tell me who smells like lavender and lemon. I was told I smelled like lavender and freesia as a human, so I'm curious…?"

Jake smiled again, but I could see wariness in his eyes. He seemed to be weighing his words, but then with a shrug he simply said, "Angela."

"Oh," I blinked at him. "She… she smells good. So, were you just on protective detail? I didn't know you were doing more than guarding her from a distance. You're all hanging out with her now? I guess that will make it easier to talk to her about all this." Jake snorted again, loudly.

"You could say that," he said, grinning. Meanwhile, Jasper had moved closer to the two of us, laying a hand on my shoulder.

"Jacob, I appreciate your effort to keep Bella calm and happy," he said patiently, "but it's unwise to leave her in the dark right now; it's not as though any recent surprises have been pleasant." Jake's smile fell, but he didn't seem upset. He sighed and kicked the ground lightly.

"We were only bringing Charlie over to the rez at first, watching Angela from a distance, trading shifts with the vamps you sent back here, but things changed when a wolf on guard duty imprinted on her. Don't be mad at your friends. We haven't actually told them yet. It only happened ten days ago, and with everything going on, we figured we'd keep this bit of drama to ourselves for a while. Leah's going to kick my ass for telling you now, but I'm with you on the no-surprises rule. It feels like we're all getting sucker punched on a daily basis."

"Leah?" I asked, "Did Seth?"

"Nope. She did," Jacob said. "The first female wolf in our tribe's history and she imprinted on a girl. Go figure, right?"

I laughed, not even trying to hold back. I laughed at the irony, the drama, the absurdity of it all, and I kept laughing as it sunk in that my closest fully-human friend was gay, or at least bi, and I'd somehow missed it. True, on some level that made me feel like I'd been a bad friend, but I was also ridiculously relieved to find out Angela had been keeping a big secret too. We could reconnect and bond over that, if nothing else. Maybe one day we'd both look back on all of this and laugh.

"She knows you're all wolves then, and she knows I'm a vampire? That all the Cullens are vampires? How did that go over?"

"Well, it might've gone over a little more smoothly if someone other than Leah told her first," Jacob admitted, eyes twinkling with humor. "I mean, it's not like she hates you or anything, but things were really awkward when she joined the pack, since she and Sam were together when he imprinted on Emily, then seeing how quickly Seth took to you⏤he talks about you like you're some kind of badass, super-powered demigoddess⏤Leah might've enjoyed describing things like your cold, undead body and your special diet a little too much. Angela's taking it all in stride, but don't be surprised if she pays really close attention to your eye color, okay?"

"Jake!"

"Really, Bella, it's fine," Jacob laughed, holding his hands up in mock surrender. "It was a joke and Angela knows that. As soon as she sees you for herself, it will be like nothing ever happened. She's taken to this supernatural stuff almost as well as you did, like a duck to water, you'll see."

And I believed him. Angela had always been so accepting and understanding. I wished for better timing⏤if only this hadn't happened when there was a supernatural war going on⏤but I couldn't deny the joy and excitement threatening to burst from my chest. I was going to get my friend back.

About two hours later, Jasper and I stood waiting on the rocky shores of La Push. The beach brought back memories of my awakening to this world. It seemed like the right place to meet Angela, the next girl from rainy little Forks to get caught up in this whirlwind. Jasper and I had already met with most of the pack and the tribal council, updating them on the new plan to protect my parents and Angela, the weapons being made… I wished they hadn't been so excited by the latter, but I understood their desire for weapons. As soon as the meeting adjourned, I heard many of the mated wolves talking about borrowing paintball guns from someone so their imprints and families could practice shooting; they were thrilled to hear that if it came down to it, the people they loved most could actually fight a vampire and stand a chance of surviving the encounter.

Leah didn't attend that meeting, but Seth was confident she'd be all for arming Angela with my special venom. "Everyone with an imprint has been teaching them to ride wolf-back," he'd said. "Leah's only had Angela for a little over a week, but they do more riding practice than anyone. I can totally see her training Ange to shoot trees she runs past. They aren't practicing so they can run. Those two want to fight."

They wanted to fight. Angela Weber wanted to charge into battle with Leah and fight vampires. Like a duck to water, Jake said. Like me. I could only hope no one like James would trick her into sacrificing herself. I would never forgive myself, Leah would kill me, Jasper would kill her, and Aro would probably call off his Guard and watch us, smiling while we all destroyed each other. No, I couldn't let my mind go there, especially not with Angela's lavender-lemon scent wafting toward me. She was just about to step into view, with Leah beside her of course.

"Bella?" Angela's shocked exclamation came out as a strangled whisper, and for all the times I'd looked upon vampires as a human and thought them breathtakingly, painfully beautiful, Angela had never looked so beautiful to me as she did in that moment. From the natural, honey highlights in her hair to the tiny flecks of green in her eyes, she stood there a quietly confident, elegantly humble beauty. After the initial shock of seeing me wore off, she beamed at me, positively glowing. Without hesitation, she sprinted toward me, Leah fighting a smile as she followed. With great effort, I resisted the urge to meet her halfway. I held still until she threw her arms around my shoulders.

"Ooph," She muttered as her soft body hit my unyielding form just a little too hard. I chuckled and gently hugged her back, keeping an eye on Leah to make sure she wasn't too upset by the exchange.

"I missed you, Ange," I said quietly, "So much. I'm sorry."

"I know why you did it," Angela sniffed, her eyes glistening as she pulled back. "Everyone's been filling me in. I'm just…" She started to cry. "I'm so glad you're alive! I mean, sort of. I can't believe you were caught up in all this all along. Edward, the van, all the attacks, the tracker, these vampire kings after you now⏤it's too much!" Angela's burst of energy left her almost as quickly as it had come. "I can't imagine what that time was like for you." She shook her head slowly, eyes downcast, and I knew exactly which time she was referring to. "You were truly alone. You couldn't tell anyone the truth… Bella, I'm so sorry." She hugged me again. "I know we all have this huge, extremely dangerous mess to deal with now, but I'm so happy to have you back, to understand…"

"Me too, Ange," I said. "I'm so glad to have you back, but… You know why I've come back here now, right? They told you?" Angela nodded somberly, and I saw fear in her eyes for the first time, I could smell the adrenaline in her blood. "Ange, they killed my step-dad, and they tried to kill my mom. Aro threatened to come for you and my dad too. Seth told me you want to fight along with Leah and the pack, but being my friend and and imprint makes you an even bigger target."

"Leah," I said, turning to the tall, muscular girl watching me with guarded eyes. "I know better than to ask you to part with your imprint, especially when the bond is so new, and I know you want as little to do with vampires like me as possible, but please consider coming to our Vermont house to stay with my parents. We'll make sure you're constantly under the best protection. I can't let Aro harm either of you."

"He won't," Leah said cooly, arms crossed. "I'm perfectly capable of protecting Angela and helping my pack. Once we get these weapons I heard about through the pack mind, we'll be able to handle ourselves just fine. You think I'd put her at unnecessary risk? I'm staying because I know we're both strong enough for this."

"I'm not questioning your abilities, Leah, but you were all lucky Edward was able to distract Tristan last time. Half the Guard is gifted, and Aro is controlling a lot of vampires outside of the Guard now. All it takes is one long-range, powerful gift thrown into the mix and you might not be able to get close enough for a good shot, assuming we can even make venom bullets that will work properly. We've only just begun the experiment."

Angela bit her lip, shooting Leah and uneasy glance. "You know I'd like to help," she told Leah, "but not if I'll put everyone in more danger by trying. Maybe we can consider it?"

"You'll feel safer on the other side of the country, surrounded by who knows how many lee–vampires you don't even know?" Leah spoke through gritted teeth. "Vampires standing guard outside your room? Watching your every move?"

"It wouldn't be like that," I interjected. "My parents will be there, and Carlisle and Esme will always be there. She's met Carlisle before, and it won't feel so invasive. If you want them to keep their distance, they will, within reason. They won't even show themselves unless they absolutely have to."

"You're welcome to come along with her or stay here," Jasper offered gently. "With Irwin's teleportation, you'll really only be seconds apart. We'll make accommodations as needed. We just want to help you keep Angela safe from the Volturi."

Leah was silent. It was clear she wanted to tell us where we could stick our offer, but each time her gaze flickered from us to Angela, I could see her resolve crumbling.

"Let's think about it," Angela offered, taking Leah's hand. "Let's see how things go with Chief Swan and go from there." Unable to disregard the voice of reason coming from her imprint, Leah nodded. My dad's reaction to all this would bring them to a decision. No pressure or anything.

Jake decided it would be helpful to change into a wolf in front of my dad first. He'd been spending the day on the rez anyway, out fishing with Billy, so when they got home⏤boom⏤Jake shifted and let his father scramble to explain before my dad started shooting. A little over an hour later, Jasper and I were knocking on the weathered door of the Blacks' house, listening as my dad's heartbeat stuttered and accelerated.

"It's okay, Charlie," I heard Jake murmur encouragingly. "You've got this. It's just Bella. She's okay. You'll be okay."

Someone opened the door⏤Sue Clearwater, there with her husband, Harry, and Leah and Seth. Jake vacated the spot next to my dad on the small couch, moving to stand behind Billy's wheelchair on my dad's other side. Jasper sent a gentle wave of calm into the room and I tried to soak it in. "Hey, Dad," I choked out lamely, my smooth and clear voice not quite managing to mask my anxiety.

"Bella?" My dad's voice cracked and his eyes welled with tears. "It's true? It's all true?"

"I'm so sorry I hurt you, Dad," I cried, taking a few steps toward him, noting the rigid postures of the others around me. "At the time, it was the only way I could protect you. Everything's changed now. The people I was trying to save you from are coming for you anyway. They already killed Phil and almost got mom… I'm so sorry, I… I really thought I was doing the right thing."

My dad stood on shaky legs, his eyes never leaving mine, and stepped closer. "It may be a small town, Bells, but I'm a cop nonetheless. We're sworn to protect the innocent at any cost to ourselves, and you… Did it absolutely break my heart to lose you? Yes," he choked out. "But what everyone here told me you did⏤trading your human life and your freedom to keep the people you love from harm⏤Bells, it'll take me a while to adjust to all this supernatural stuff, but… Bella, I'm damn proud of you. I thought you were broken beyond repair for a while there, but you've got to be the strongest, bravest person I've ever known. My daughter's a hero."

We sprang at each other. He moved slower of course, and I was careful to keep my speed and strength in check, but I locked his fragile human body in my stone embrace as his warmth and his homey scent enveloped me. He didn't even flinch when he touched me. He had his daughter back and I had my dad, and nothing else mattered in that moment.

It all went better than I'd dared to hope it would. Though shaken, both Angela and my dad had taken their introduction to the supernatural world very well. They seemed comfortable when I introduced them to the Denalis; the look on Angela's face when she saw the Denali women up close was priceless. Angela found my speed, grace, and physical strength hilarious given how clumsy I was as a human, and my dad could talk to Jasper for hours about the civil war and other historic events he'd lived through. A part of me wondered if my dad dove into those conversations as a coping mechanism. Those conversations were all about humans, after all, so the details were a little easier to swallow. Either way, I was immensely grateful for his effort, especially when he made it clear to Billy Black that he wasn't going to adopt his old friend's prejudices. Vampires, wolves, Saturnos, special powers, secret wars⏤if he was going to embrace part of it, he was going to embrace all of it. Jasper was loving it, smiling and laughing whenever my dad was around.

"He's so much like you," Jasper said to me more than once. "Angela too, but Charlie has that same stubborn fearlessness you always showed around us."

"I can only hope he'll be able to help my mom through all this," I said. "I'm afraid the stress of it all is going to maker her sick, or that it will somehow cause permanent damage to her or the baby."

"She'll be fine. They both will. Just give it time."

Leah was less-than-thrilled that Charlie's easy acceptance of the situation meant Angela was a little more willing to move to Vermont for the duration of the war. Imprints came first, so as much as Leah wanted to stay and fight, Angela going to Vermont meant Leah was going with her. "The lee–vamps passing through will learn real quick to stay away from us," Leah said. Angela smacked Leah's arm whenever Leah started to use 'the L word' or any other slurs against vampires. She made it clear she wouldn't tolerate trash talk or name-calling from either side. If only that was all we had to worry about.

It happened all at once.

A surprise enemy, an old rival of Maria's, had crossed her path in Vermont and chosen to follow her back to the Cullen house. Witnessing practice sessions with the first weapons made with my venom, the vampire ran to a gas station down the road and called the front desk in the Castle Volterra. Focused on so many places and people at once, Alice had seen none of this. She did see Aro ordering simultaneous attacks on Stowe and Forks. This was followed by a vision of Marcus Volturi himself boarding a flight to Seattle with twenty Guards. Peter saw that Stowe would be attacked by more Volterran allies than Guards, expendable pawns Aro could afford to lose in his attempt to destroy our weapons. In La Push, Aro's decision to send twenty-one vampires to the reservation was a weapon in and of itself. Boys and girls as young as twelve shifted. Men and women in their thirties and forties shifted. I happened to be visiting my Dad at Billy's when Billy shifted.

"Whoa there, you okay?" Charlie asked Billy when he groaned and wavered as if dizzy to the point of sickness, then Billy cried out and doubled over in his chair. I lunged for my dad and pulled him away from Billy in the time it took him to draw a breath. My dad blinked, confused and alarmed as he found himself pressed against the wall furthest from Billy, one of my hands holding him in place behind me as Billy fell forward out of his chair, rolling and writhing on the ground as his body tried and failed to change into a strong, healthy wolf. My dad struggled, only hearing Billy's cries of pain, but I could hear so much more. I could hear the cracking and thudding of bones warping and shifting, the tearing of old and little-used muscle, and the noisome squelching of soft tissue and blood.

"He's shifting, Dad," I warned. "Stay back."

"I thought only teens and a few kids could change!"

"Almost everyone in the tribe has the gene, but it's not supposed to kick in like this. Shifting may kill Billy, but there's nothing we can do now."

As I spoke, Billy's grunts of pain turned into one long, piercing howl and he transformed. Russet fur like Jacob's covered his form, but tufts of grey fur gave him a speckled look. He was smaller than the other wolves, pony-sized rather than horse-sized. His hind legs dragged uselessly behind him as he tried to stand and walk. He wrinkled his nose as he looked across the small room at me, reacting to my distinctive scent but showing no signs of hostility. He no longer whimpered in pain, but there was a deep sadness in his eyes that broke my heart.

"Billy?" I whispered, "Can you hear others in the pack mind? Are they coming?" He nodded his big head once. "Is there anything I can do?" My breath caught. If I were human I'd be sobbing, shaking. My Dad trembled behind me. "Do you think you can change back?"

"He'll die the moment he does," an unfamiliar voice called from outside. I pulled my dad far from the door, darted over to crouch protectively in front of Billy, and loosed the most threatening growl I could muster as the scent of an unknown vampire reached me. A second later, I realized I could smell Jasper too, along with a few wolves, including Jake. By the time the door opened, I was standing normally, confused but convinced the newcomer had to be an ally, an ally allowed across the border no less.

"Bella, this is Jillian," Jasper said as he approached, sending gentle waves of calm into me, my shell-shocked dad, and the broken wolf behind me. Jillian, our third Saturno, stood strangely close to Jacob, significantly shorter than my friend but about my height, modest curves. She had long, curly, fawn-brown hair and delicate features. Looking at her, I felt certain she'd been a freckle-faced human. She somehow managed to look vampire-beautiful and human-average at the same time. She had kind eyes⏤gold eyes⏤and an inviting presence. She had called to me from outside.

"I thought the same, but how can you be sure it will kill him?" I asked, stepping aside as she and Jake both moved to kneel beside Billy, both stroking his fur soothingly. In the distance, I could hear several wolves approaching the house in wolf form.

"I know because Taha Aki told me so," Jillian answered simply. Billy swung his head in her direction, wonder in his eyes.

"Taha Aki was the first in the history of our tribe to take wolf form," Jake explained. "My ancestor, and one of the last great spirit chiefs, thirteenth-century."

"That's why you allowed her across the border," I thought aloud. "She can speak to the dead, to your ancestors."

Jake choked out a wry laugh, on the verge of tears. "She can come and go as she pleases because I went and imprinted on a vampire. Her connection to our ancestors will make this easier for all of us." With that, Jake moved a few feet back and shifted, joining his father in the pack mind.

"He needs to say goodbye," Jillian explained. "Taha Aki, the other chiefs, sons of chiefs… they're all gathering here for the passing of the torch. The way the wolves heal, Billy's body will never be the way it was again. My other gift, my healing power, is no help here. If he tries to change back, he will die an excruciating death, but he cannot remain like this either."

"This is happening because of us," Jasper murmured in the slightly deeper tones of his alter ego, "because Aro found out we're making weapons and sent a third of the Guard this way. Bad enough that a bunch of children turned, and now this. The least I could do was offer my services."

Jasper clenched his jaw tightly as he bit out the word 'services'. The Major was coming forward to guard his heart while he did something terrible. Meanwhile, the entire pack had gathered and stood in silent vigil just outside, all in wolf form, listening to their dying chief.

"I only hope you can forgive my request," Jasper continued, "but I'll need your help. It will take our combined power to…" Kill him. It hit me all at once, and I wanted to scream, cry, break things. My mind was reeling, but then I looked over at my own father in the corner, ashen-faced and frozen in fear. His brown eyes met mine, questioning, pleading.

"Our venom poisons them," I said to no one in particular, bracing myself. "If I amplify your gift, you can sedate him enough to keep his body from healing, and he won't feel the bites or the poison working. The pack won't feel it through the pack mind."

"I'll bite him," Jasper insisted. "I won't let you take that on yourself. The very thought of involving you in this at all… Bella, I'm so sorry."

Billy and Jacob we're nose-to-nose on the floor. Jillian had moved to kneel beside Jacob, her fingers in his fur. I took Jasper's hand and pulled him down beside Billy. "It's the least we can do."

"I give you this one thought to keep: I am with you still, I do not sleep." I was about to amplify when Jillian started to sing, her voice warm and sweet. "I am a thousand winds that blow. I am the diamond glints on snow. I am the sunlight on ripened grain. I am the gentle autumn rain. When you awaken in the morning's hush, I am the swift, uplifting rush of quiet birds in circling flight. I am the soft stars that shine at night." Jillian locked eyes with me, nodding in encouragement. I amplified and Jasper poured peace and lethargy into Billy. "Do not think of me as gone. I am with you still in each new dawn."

Jillian's song died with Billy Black. While I held Jasper's hand, he bent over Billy and bit his neck on both sides, biting him twice more just behind his front legs, near his heart. We only had to wait a couple minutes after that. I rested my head on Jasper's shoulder, still amplifying, and I heard my dad slowly approaching, felt his warm hand grip my shoulder. Another beat of silence, then Billy was gone and howls of grief surrounded us, a farewell chorus in the night.


	29. Pluto

♀︎(Bella's POV)

Jillian, Lysander, Eleazar, Carmen, Tanya, Irina, Kate, Garrett, Mary, Randall, Benjamin, Tia, Siobhan, Liam, Maggie, Annie, Jasper, and I were in Forks, ready to join the wolves in battle against Marcus and the twenty Guards coming our way. Carlisle, Esme, Rose, Emmett, Peter, Char, Maria, Jude, Alanna, Zafrina, Senna, and Kachiri were in Stowe, prepared to defend my mother and our weapon supply from the sixteen Volterran allies Alice could see en route to the Vermont house. The paintball guns loaded with venom bullets weren't battle ready yet, but the nine finished knives had been assigned to vampires in each group: Carlisle, Alice, Irwin, Eleazar, Kate, Benjamin, Maria, Zafrina, and Annie were equipped with daggers coated with my venom. Carlisle and Eleazar carried knives because they would be guarding my parents, Carlisle and Esme guarding my mom in Stowe while Eleazar and Carmen guarded my dad and Angela. The other armed vampires were chosen because their gifts would help them get close to targets with little help; Maria was given a knife because Peter insisted she'd need one. Alice and Irwin were going to teleport between battles, taking shots as Alice saw them like snipers.

Sam, Leah, and Seth were on guard duty, along with the eight new wolves the pack had gained the night before. They were far from battle-ready⏤three of them were twelve-year-old children⏤so Sam decided he needed to stay with them, guarding Emily and various members of the tribe. Leah and Seth were going to team up with Carmen and Eleazar. I didn't bother asking Jake why he was taking point on the front line. Jillian had said all the past chiefs were there when his father passed. He would allow himself to grieve later, when his people weren't under attack. This went much deeper than one death, one battle… by blood, he was the chief of the Quileute tribe.

"It's a comfort to know his spirit is at peace," Jillian said as she, Jake, Jasper, and I walked along the beach. A special burial would be held for Billy, stuck as he was in wolf form, once the approaching threat was dealt with.

"You got here just in time," Jacob murmured, forcing a smile; he walked hand-in-hand with Jillian. "I mean, the timing sucks, but I don't think I could handle this without you here. It helps to know I have one sure thing⏤a future of my own to fight for."

"The people we need most have a way of finding us," Jillian said dreamily. As she spoke, she seemed to be watching something or someone just a couple feet in front of her, on her other side. "My best friend helped me keep my sanity after I lost control… he's here with us. His name is Milo."

"Hello, Milo," Jake, Jasper, and I all said in acceptance and greeting. Jillian laughed softly.

"Milo said he's honored to meet you, bowing quite theatrically while doing so. He always knows how to make…" Jillian blinked and took a quick step forward, arm outstretched as if to catch a falling object. There was fear in her eyes for a moment, and pain, but then she seemed to calm herself, or maybe Milo said something to calm her. She caught the calculating look Jasper and I exchanged.

"I think he's leaving, now that I have a family again. Of course, I won't keep him if he is ready to move on, but… we've been through so much.

"I'm the daughter of a pirate. A bastard daughter, but a pirate's daughter nonetheless. In June 1718, the pirate Edward Teach, better known as Blackbeard, deliberately ran his ship, Queen Anne's Revenge, aground in Beaufort Inlet, North Carolina. He and a faction of his crew fled to Charleston, South Carolina; they pillaged the city, stole ships, took hostages for ransom, raped women… my mother, Fianola Lockwood was taken by Blackbeard himself." Jake started to shake, but Jillian moved closer to him and squeezed his hand.

"Ransom paid, my mother was released, but she told no one what happened. Her ransom was paid by her betrothed, James Williams, and she was ashamed her virginity had been stolen by a pirate. James, his father, his brothers, at least half the men in town left to hunt down Blackbeard and his crew. It took them several months, but they did catch him and he was executed that November.

"Back in Charleston, my mother realized she was carrying Blackbeard's child. Though she was alone in what she had suffered, she was not the only woman in town hiding an illegitimate pregnancy. Her close friend, Hermia Watson, was pregnant with a love child, their children having been conceived within days of each other. They chose to run away together.

"My mother and Hermia struggled to survive as vagabonds for months, traveling north, but they were strong and never fell ill. Three days before Milo's birth, a man attacked them. He attempted to rape Hermia, but my mother killed the man to save her, leaving them no choice but to flee further north. Hermia gave birth to Milo on January 20th, 1719. Luckily for Hermia, I was born shortly after, on February 14th. Milo rarely cried in my presence, and Hermia's wounds from the attack healed remarkably well, with little scarring and no infection. Sleeping near me even seemed to keep her nightmares away. Days old and knowing nothing of life, I was keeping the four of us in good health.

"My mother and Hermia finally found a home and steady work when a generous couple in northern Massachusetts⏤modern day Maine⏤took them in, in need of housekeepers and healers. Their home was near the front line of Father Rale's War, and they found themselves regularly housing and caring for wounded soldiers.

"Christopher and Cathrine, the home owners, came to regard us as their own family, supporting us even in the face of the unknown. They had noticed little things for years: Soldiers I spent more time with seemed to heal faster, and we all remained healthy despite all the death and disease around us. Still, I was tormented. I screamed and cried each night, not suffering from nightmares, but seeing and hearing things no one else could; we lived in a war zone and I could see and communicate with the dead. Christopher and Cathrine went often to church, but they did not believe such extreme measures should be taken against those who were… different. They feared I would be tried for witchcraft or sent to asylum if word of my abilities got out. For years, they kept my secret and kept me safe.

"As Milo and I grew, familial feelings fell away. By the time we were fifteen, we were slipping away from our mothers on market days and sneaking into the theatre to watch A Midsummer Night's Dream from the shadows; we first kissed when the faerie spell was broken. A year later, we were openly courting one another, but it was not to be.

"One summer's eve, I waited for Milo under a large tree near the theatre, close enough to see the players, but not near enough to hear. Certainly no one heard the vampire snatching me away. He carried me into the woods and bit me, but then he was distracted. I can only imagine he must have caught the scent of his singer to abandon his prey so abruptly. He disappeared and I began changing, alone in the woods…"

"Another vampire found you," Jasper said, not a question but a statement of fact. "A newborn turning and waking alone near a populated area? That's a recipe for disaster. I can tell you're remembering the burn, but I'm not feeling the level of horror and guilt I would expect from that scenario." Jillian smiled at him.

"Garrett. That's why Annie recruited him to help her find me. He was hunting nearby when he heard me and came looking. He told me he considered killing me then and there⏤he didn't want to be stuck with a newborn because of another vampire's carelessness. Obviously, he couldn't bring himself to do it. He ran me to the top of Mount Mansfield to finish my change. He tried his best to train me after I awoke, but he quickly realized training me to hunt humans was our of the question. I could see and hear the dead, after all.

"At the time, Garrett had not yet met Carlisle, but he'd encountered the three succubi sisters who fed on animals⏤your friends, Tanya, Irina, and Kate. Feeding on animals was a little easier, but I can see some animal spirits too. They're less likely to linger after death. Wild animals with no attachments to humans rarely linger or return in spirit after death, but some would stay. Scared and confused by my attack, some would walk with me for a time, trying to understand, trying to go back to their parents or to their babies... One day, I lashed out at Garrett and ran, just a few months into this life, thirsty and hating myself for it, hating poor Garrett for not finishing me off when he found me in the woods. I wasn't paying much attention to where I was going; I was running away from everything. Too late, I realized my feet were carrying me home."

I shuddered. Jasper was trying to keep Jillian's mounting guilt, horror, and grief to himself, but it transferred to me through our joined hands.

"Only Milo was home. I was so angry, and so thirsty, and he smelled so good... before I realized what I was doing, I had bitten him and started to drink..." Jillian shook her head, trying in vain to dislodge the memory. "I think I came as close as a vampire can come to blacking out, my mind shutting down, unable to accept what I'd just done. When it was over, I didn't know what to do. I picked up his body, thinking I needed to hide him or bury him somewhere, but Milo'a spirit manifested before me and asked me to disfigure the bite and leave his body for our mothers to find. He'd already seen them staying up all hours, worried sick, searching for me, the hope that I might still be alive eating away at them slowly. Milo wanted them to get some form of closure with him, agonizing as it would be.

"I expected Milo to leave after I fulfilled his last wish. I thought he would hate me, but I think he forgave me as soon as I bit him, before he even understood what was happening. I killed him and there he was, comforting me of all things, telling me how much I was missed and loved, how happy he was to see me alive… more or less.

"I went back to Garrett and told him everything. As much as my aversion to feeding on any living creature clearly frustrated him, hearing more about Milo, about my human life, it brought about the realization that I might be a Saturno. Garrett suggested I try taking smaller amounts of blood from animals, then healing and releasing them. It worked. I was able to feed without killing, and I was finally able to come to terms with what I had become... And now Milo's leaving. Now that I have my mate, he's ready to move on."

"Speaking of moving on," Alice interjected, materializing out of nowhere with Irwin beside her, "it's time. Jillian, we need to take you to Jacob's house." Jacob hugged Jillian tightly, his nose buried in her hair despite her scent. Jillian stood on her tiptoes to kiss his cheek, then she took Irwin's free hand and disappeared with Irwin and Alice. She would be guarding my dad and Angela, along with Carmen, Eleazar, Leah, and Seth. Jake shifted without a word and I panicked, jumping in front of him.

"Remember, once you lead the pack in, you need to stay close to me. As long as you're in range of my shield, the whole pack will be protected. Don't let anyone provoke you. Marcus still believes werewolves killed his mate. You're similar enough to enrage him; he'll come to you, then I'll bite him or someone can stab him." Jake huffed, but he gave me a gentle headbutt in passing, acknowledgment enough.

When Jasper and I arrived in what I would always regard as the baseball clearing, I imagined James walking through the trees in the distance. It was all so surreal. Thirteen vampires waited for us. Jake and half the wolf pack waited about sixty yards downwind, hidden in the woods at our back. It was no secret we'd joined forces with them, but Alice's visions would remain clearer longer if the wolves held back at first, not joining the first charge. We were counting on Alice and Irwin to make several venom strikes in each location; as soon as the wolves got involved, they would be teleporting blind. A rustle in the distance snapped everyone to attention and we all fell in line. Footsteps became more distinct, and then they came faster, trees breaking and falling away as the rush began. There would be no talking.

I didn't know every name, but I knew every face... all but one. Most of the Guards were low-to-mid-rank, only seven were female, Felix stood taller than all the others. Marcus emerged last, the apathetic mask he usually wore painted with anger forced upon him. He was just another puppet, a victim. His eyes met mine. Locked on target, I charged toward him.

"Newborn speed!" Jasper called out in warning. He and Benjamin were right behind me, the others a few feet behind them. The Guards ahead smiled at me, thrilled to see the newborn Saturno forgetting herself so easily. I paused and waited for the others to catch up. A split-second before impact, I amplified, allowing Jasper to send out a massive wave of confusion and reluctance. At the same time, Benjamin made the ground ahead of us ripple and shatter, engulfing our enemies in a dust cloud dense enough to hamper even our vision. We tackled the first bodies we reached.

"Down!" Kate yelled, and I turned to see her leap over Garrett, landing between him and Felix, reaching out and bringing Felix down with an audible zap. Garrett grabbed Felix's reaching arms, pulling just hard enough to make his arms crack at the shoulder, and Kate drove her knife into the opening. I couldn't wait to see how the weapon worked. With Jasper and Benjamin still close beside me, I pushed forward. Our two nomads, Mary and Randall, leapt at two female Guards to our left. Mary bit one female and pinned her down. Irwin and Alice appeared and Alice drove her knife into the bite. The female Randall held suddenly got the upper hand, twisting out of his hold and snapping his arm at the elbow. She chucked the limb at Irwin and leapt toward him with a shriek. He reflexively teleported with Alice in tow, so Jasper turned to help. Benjamin sent up another cloud. I howled.

One second. For one full second, the battle stopped. Everyone shifted on their feet, eyes up, scanning the woods all around. Wolves here could kill vampires, that much everyone knew⏤werewolves, shape-shifters, whatever you called them, they were a threat⏤and their answering howl was thunderous.

"Kassam!" Marcus bellowed. Kassam? The one vampire I'd never seen, of course.

"NO!" Siobhan screamed and ran back the way we'd come, toward the charging wolves.

"Siobhan!" Liam followed, though he seemed to be looking right through his mate. Maggie was frozen where she stood, clearly upset, but looking strangely... defiant?

"Tanya!" Kate ran the same direction, followed by a distraught Garrett, her new mate. Tanya and Irina followed him.

Annie cried out and dove down toward the center of the field. Benjamin, Tia, Mary, Randall... "Bella!" My mate cried out my name even as he ran away from me. The wolves had come to a full stop, whimpering and pawing at the ground.

With a triumphant shout, several Guards jumped the length of the field and attacked.

"Shield!" Lysander growled, telekinetically knocking two Guards away from me and tackling a third about to strike. He attacked sloppily, not all of his blows connecting. I turned back toward Maggie just in time to see Felix grab her. I crouched, preparing to leap for him, but then I realized he'd saved her from another attacker. He'd been stabbed and my venom had freed him.

"Shield!" Felix shouted, carrying Maggie back toward the others.

Maggie could detect lies. Illusions could blind her, but they couldn't deceive her.

I grabbed Lysander by the arm and let my shield burst out around us. When his eyes refocused, I amplified his gift. "Kill him!"

Boom. Kassam's head was blown off in an instant. Boom. Lysander brought down another Guard even as he ran with me to rejoin the others. A Guard had taken off Liam's arm. Garrett and Irina were in pieces. In that moment, I was more aware than ever of the exact shape of my shield. I molded it to every angle, every curve of each vampire and wolf I cared about. The Guards close to us were taken down swiftly, but too few, too few...

"Where are the others?"

"They split up while Kassam's gift distracted you," Felix replied, his voice cold and distant. We had no time to talk. Some Guards were still advancing, Marcus urging them on. A distant howl pierced the air, and I saw Jake stumble. Back on his feet in a split-second, he turned and led the wolves back toward town. The other wolves. Emily. Angela. My dad... Behind me, nine Guards were closing in. The female Mary and Alice had freed was burning, her venom on on Marcus' hands. I took Kate's hand in mine. With her sister and her mate in pieces around her, she needed no further instruction. I amplified and effectively turned Kate into Jane.

One down. Jasper charged and ripped them apart. Zap. Tia bit them and Benjamin stabbed them. Zap. Tanya tore apart the Guard she reached, too furious to play nice. Zap. Felix picked up Kate's knife and stabbed another large male Guard. Kate released my hand and rushed at another. Lysander, Annie, Maggie, and Mary lunged for the others.

Running toward Marcus, I dropped low for a slide-tackle. Marcus stumbled slightly, but he recovered and whirled, aiming a powerful kick down toward my head. Latching onto his leg, I pulled, still failing to topple him, but smothering the blow. Marcus freed himself from my hold with one more powerful heave, launching me upward. I rolled in the air as Jasper had taught me, and as I came back down I grabbed Marcus' reaching hand and swung my legs down as hard as I could, kicking him in the chest while my weight fell on his wrist. As I fell, I saw the flicker of fear in Marcus' eyes. His gaze flickered away for a millisecond, toward one of the knives no doubt, and he seemed to decide he couldn't risk an open wound. Before I could break his hand off at the wrist, he leapt up to meet me, pulling me close so I lost my leverage. We both hit the ground and rolled away from each other.

"Go help the pack," I ordered the others, and Marcus loosed the first real growl I'd ever heard from him. "Help the wounded or get them to Jillian. Protect everyone." Jasper nodded and everyone else scattered.

"The fools run to the aid of our natural enemy," Marcus wheezed, his tone harsh but his voice strangely thin after centuries of silence. "It's true, you've ruined them."

There was no point arguing with him while Aro and Chelsea controlled him. Still, tugging at the right threads could bring him down. Jasper remained close but said nothing. A glance in his direction revealed what I already knew: the Major had taken over. He knew I needed this fight in more ways than one. It had to be me.

"Were you able to fix Jane, yet? I know she's too valuable to burn." I gestured casually toward the female he'd burned. Marcus growled and lunged. I vaulted over him.

"She's doing just fine, though she fears you now, as she should."

"Chelsea's a miracle worker," I taunted, my words dripping with sarcasm. Marcus sprang at me again and I narrowly evaded him.

"Do not speak of my mate, vile creature. Your mate is within my reach."

"My mate is out of your league," I hissed. "What chance have you got against Major Whitlock if you can't even take a newborn." Marcus lunged, and I braced for the impact. He caught me with one arm and threw me into a cluster of boulders. Before the last shard of stone hit the ground, he was on me again, but this time I drove my elbows down into he stone below me. The boulder cracked and split in two. Marcus lost his balance as the stone fell away, and that one moment was all I needed. Marcus fell lumpishly on top of me, and I bit into his broad shoulder, injecting as much venom as I could into the wound.

"That will do, Isabella," Marcus murmured seven seconds later, my teeth still in his shoulder. A wave of calm washed over us both. I released Marcus immediately and Jasper came over to help us up. For the first time, Marcus looked fully alert and truly present. His eyes were haunted, but they were clear. He looked around the field for a moment, then he heaved a heavy sigh and turned to face me. "We have much to discuss, but it will all keep for now." Alice and Irwin appeared then. Perfect timing.

"Marcus, will you wait in the Cullen home here in Forks?" I asked. "I'll join you as soon as we know our friends are safe." Marcus simply nodded. Irwin bowed slightly and offered his free arm. Four seconds after they took Marcus away, Irwin and Alice reappeared. I amplified Irwin's gift so he could take us all into town.

"Bells!" We arrived at the Black house, where my dad and Angela had been kept. Eleazar, Carmen, Jillian, Leah, and Seth had been their guards. There was a purple-tinted smoke column rising behind the house. When the smell of freshly spilled human blood hit my nose, I tensed, not bothered by my thirst at all but shocked that the two humans present had come to harm. Turning toward my dad's voice, I saw there was dried blood on his left arm, but no other sign of injury.

"Bella!" Angela ran toward me as well, only a few streaks of blood on her arm; it looked like Leah had tried licking her mate's arm clean.

"All the Guards came here," Alice whispered rapidly in my ear. "Emily is safe; Sam and the new wolves didn't even have to fight. Leah was hurt and Angela panicked, cutting her arm to distract the Guards, then Charlie cut his arm to take attention off her." Jasper snorted.

"Yep, something in the water here," he muttered wryly.

My dad and Angela reached me then, and they both threw their arms around me. "It's okay," I said, hugging them back. "I'm fine, you're okay, none of our people were burned⏤some need reassembling and healing, but we somehow got through it."

"We lost one in Stowe," Irwin said somberly. "It was going well at first⏤Zafrina slipped around behind the Volterran allies and trapped most of them in one of her illusions, but stragglers surprised her and attacked. One of her coven mates, Kachiri, saved her from the fire, but she was overpowered and burned instead."

"How many freed?" Jasper prompted.

"Nine out of seventeen freed in Stowe," Alice answered.

"Nice," Seth interjected, walking over with Leah, both of them back in human form. Carmen, Eleazar, and Jillian followed.

"They all fled," Alice said sullenly. "No help from them, but at least we don't have to worry about them attacking us again. The other eight might have been saved if no one came to harm, but once Kachiri was burned..." For a moment, everyone was silent.

"What did you do with Master Marcus?" Felix asked, coming up the road with Annie, Benjamin, and Tia.

Leah nearly phased when she saw Felix, but Angela moved closer and squeezed her hand reassuringly, calming the mordant wolf. Felix noticed Leah's reaction and ducked his head in submission, slowing to human pace and stopping a few yards away. Annie, airborne on approach, landed next to him. Benjamin and Tia stood at his other side, showing silent solidarity.

"Felix is the only Guard we really saved," Annie explained. "Aro ordered Marcus and the Guards to kill each other before losing one of their number to our side."

"Felix can come to the Cullen house with me," I said. "I bit Marcus. He's waiting there for us. Felix saved Maggie and warned me when Kassam attacked..." I turned to Jasper. "What did his gift do anyway? Everyone panicked." Jasper shuddered.

"We all saw our loved ones in pieces," he said, "in piles close to a fire. The illusion also countered logic somehow. You were standing right next to me, but all my senses told me you were..."

"Mas... Aro found Kassam shortly before your wedding," Felix offered. "Kassam was hidden away, a secret weapon. I only met him yesterday."

The sound of a car coming down the road made us all scatter. Most of the vampires hid in the trees around the house. I swept Angela up into my arms, ignoring Leah's snarl of protest, and ran inside with her. As I knew he would, Jasper carried my dad inside the same way. Leah and Seth barreled through the front door just before the car came around the corner. I whipped around when Jake charged in through the back door, just catching a glimpse of the water bucket he'd thrown at the fire out there; it wasn't enough to douse the fire entirely. The car pulled off the road and parked out front. Jake walked over to the window, his eyes widening in surprise.

"Rebecca?" His sister. Billy. The funeral.

Jillian opened the back door and beckoned to me. Waving to my dad and Angela, I grabbed Jasper's hand and we slipped out together. While Jake greeted his sister, Jasper and I found Felix and lead him away, back toward the old Cullen house.

"Felix, are you the only surviving Guard?" Marcus was waiting in the living room when we arrived.

"Yes, Master Marcus. The others fell to the purging order when they were freed." Marcus nodded somberly.

"The weapons were inspired, Isabella, but you certainly struck a nerve with Aro."

"They weren't my idea," I said. "And please, call me Bella."

"Bella," he said, nodding politely. "I am honored you put yourself at risk to save me. Too long I have wasted away in a grim and distorted reality, my thoughts and decisions never my own. Tell me, my dear, how are we to proceed from here?"


	30. Jupiter

♀︎(Bella's POV)

"Yeah, she's still here. She's been acting weird since she got here, but I guess she's feeling out of place. We haven't seen much of Becks these last few years. Now she's here and Dad's gone... She only knows a bit about the wolf stuff, bare minimum really, so we're all walking on eggshells out here 'cause we can't talk about all that's happening... Yeah, you could say tensions are high. Jillian's been my rock⏤no pun intended, but ha ha... Well, I'd better go. Dinner's ready; Becks may be acting strange, but her food smells amazing. With a pack this size, I'll be lucky to get a mouthful."

"Get in there Jake."

"Later, Bella. Thanks."

Jillian was the only vampire allowed to attend Billy's funeral. The pack trusted me, but they needed a break. For all we knew, more wolves would join the massive pack if we lingered in their territory longer than necessary. I also got the feeling some of the wolves wanted to keep me and Jasper away for a little while. Again, they did trust is, and deep down they knew we did what we did to help them all... but we did kill Billy. I helped Jasper sedate him and Jasper bit him. We did what we had to do, but no one would forget that moment any time soon. According to Jake, the funeral had gone well, even if his reunion with his older sister was strained.

Our wounded allies had been reassembled; only Kachiri had been lost. Zafrina and Senna were still raging, but they intended to stay with us. Liam, Garrett, and Irina were back on their feet and ready for another fight. Siobhan and Liam were getting along well with Felix, as he'd saved Maggie back on that field. Mary and Randall seemed reluctant... Randall had only lost part of one arm, but their eyes judged me every time we crossed paths. I'd made several mistakes on that battlefield, and in doing so I'd lost their trust. Marcus and I hadn't spoken much; Alice and Irwin had come to collect us shortly after we met him in the old Cullen house. He spent most of his time in Carlisle's office, avoiding the crowd while he adjusted to his mental and emotional liberty. He and I would have a serious talk soon. I was the face of this rebellion after all, whether I liked it or not.

Though the Volturi Guards had been programmed to kill anyone freed, Carlisle still believed our first experiment with the weapons was a great success; nine vampires had been spared because my venom had restored their free will.

"Ugh.. you really need to warn humans not to eat beforehand," my dad groaned, appearing along with Irwin. He'd insisted upon paying his respects at the funeral, agreeing to join us as soon as it was over; Angela and Leah had arrived minutes before, but Leah had insisted on being taken directly into their private room.

"I'm sorry, Charlie," Irwin said. "I should have confirmed you were fit for travel. Miss Clearwater and Miss Webber experiences no ill effects, and Bella's mother was unconscious when I carried her here." Looking a little green, my dad eased himself into an armchair beside him. Irwin shot me an apologetic glance. I shook my head, walking over.

"My fault," I said. "Leah saw me when I was human, still adjusting⏤she must have remembered teleportation made me sick, and she clearly warned Angela. Sorry, Dad," I added, sitting on the arm of the chair and laying my hand on the back of his neck. "It made me sick when I was human too. I didn't think to warn you."

"Well, the ice pack helps," Charlie chuckled. "It's still weird how cold you are, but I can't complain now."

"Irwin," I stopped him short of running off. "Why are you referring to Angela and Leah so formally? Trust me, Ange is like me with that kind of thing. Just call her Angela."

"I'm deferring to her mate," Irwin said simply. "Miss Clearwater wants us to keep our distance whenever possible."

"I get it. Thanks, Irwin." With a soft smile and a nod, Irwin ran off to find Alice. My dad jumped slightly, blinking rapidly.

"Still getting used to that too," he laughed, apparently feeling better again.

"C'mon, Dad, it's not like I turn into a huge hairy wolf."

"Too bad," he laughed again, his chocolate brown eyes alight with true happiness and humor. "I haven't seen it yet, but Angela tells me riding wolf-back is the best thing ever."

Instant flashback. I remembered my first time in the Cullen house in Forks, the moment Edward picked me up and jumped out a window... no windows on this level, but... "Dad, will you come with me for a few minutes? Mom's resting now. We can talk to her in a little while." I stood and held out my hand. After several seconds of hesitation, he took it. "This will be weird for both of us, I assure you, but worth it." My dad stood readily enough, but he looked at me warily. "It's my turn to give you a piggyback ride." Before he could respond, I turned my back to him and reached back to grab his legs, lifting him up. His arms automatically fell around me neck and shoulders. "Hold on tight," I laughed, feeling and smelling his blush. "You can't choke me." I took off running, not at my top speed, but fast enough to make my dad's heart stutter, sending a rush of adrenaline through his veins.

"I can go a lot faster," I spoke loudly as I left the house and set a course through the woods, "but I've been in your place. You can still see at this speed." There was a long pause, and I started to slow, concerned, but then my dad changed his grip.

"No more secrets, kiddo," he said, and I could hear the smile in his voice. "Let's see what you've got. Y'know, now that you're not tripping over air." He was terrified, but he was up for it. I shot off at my top speed, earning a whoop of excitement for it.

It took about ten minutes for me to reach Lake Mansfield, partway up the mountain. Seeing no humans when I entered the clearing, I leapt across it, latching onto a broad tree branch as I came back down. Mounting the branch, I gently pried my dad's arms from my shoulders and helped him sit on the branch beside me. He gave me a weak smile while he caught his breath. I grinned. "Wolves can't climb trees." My dad coughed, trying to laugh. After a brief coughing fit, he laughed long and loud.

"No, I can't imagine one of them up here," he said at last. "Bells, I still feel like I'm gonna wake up from this wild dream any moment now... but it's all real, isn't it? Billy and Phil are gone, Renee's back in that house with a baby on the way, Jake's a wolf, you're married to Jasper, you're a vampire, you just saved a vampire king, and there are two more kings out there trying to kill you..." Wow, that really was a lot. Still, I felt the need to add one more log to the fire.

"Edward's gone too. Aro killed him a while ago now... Do you remember when you first met Peter and Char? You thought I was with the Cullens in Alaska, back when I had to make regular visits to Volterra. They stayed with you the night before you all came to meet us at the airport."

"Hard to forget. Jake came over too. I was unknowingly hosting a supernatural slumber party... and I just realized I'm the only one who slept." He could tell I was hurting. He was trying to make me laugh. I did.

"They were protecting you. Edward was executed that night, for a crime he didn't commit. Aro had been controlling him for months before we realized what was going on, and it was a complete accident when I was hurt and Edward got a taste of my blood. It freed him from Aro's control the same way my venom freed Felix and Marcus."

"That's why they're making weapons with your venom? Like those knives?" I nodded.

"I don't like it, but these vampires are breaking laws and risking a lot to help us. Knowing they can use my venom anywhere, anytime... it makes them feel safer, more empowered... Edward was Aro's weapon for a long time. He knew I loved Edward, that I cared for him even when I fell in love with Jasper, my true mate, so he used Edward to hurt me, to hurt all of us. It was all that kept me from breaking down, knowing Edward was free. He was an innocent victim, but I saw the look in his eyes when Aro's hold on him was broken... It was like all light and hope had been sucked out of him; he'd always feared becoming a true monster, and Aro had..." I couldn't say it. I couldn't think of it. "There was no undoing what had been done, no going back. He deserved to live, but I'm not sure he could've lived with himself. The next night, I swear, he came to me in my sleep. He showed me he was happy, that he was finally at peace..." My dad's comforting hand was warm on my shoulder, his grip reassuring.

"The hardest thing for me to accept isn't the presence of supernatural creatures in the world. I can't stand the thought of how much you've been through in secret. All I've heard these past few days⏤the van, that tracker, his mate, the death and destruction you had to keep from me... I get why you had to keep quiet, but I'm your dad, dammit! I wish I could've helped you."

"You can," I interjected. "You can remember me like I was. Just being here with me, you can remind me of who I was, who I really am, no matter what happens. Edward died right in front of me, tormented by thoughts of what he'd done."

"Wait, he was killed right in front of you?"

"Yes! Edward, Phil, Billy, they all died in front of me, but Edward's life was taken from him long before he was killed. Dad, please," I cried, frustrated as always when no tears fell. "I don't know exactly what's wrong, but my instincts are screaming at me! This is war, after all, and I can't shake the feeling that something terrible is coming, and... You know I'll never hurt you, right? You won't hesitate to say something if I start to lose myself? I'll talk to Jasper about this too, but you see things differently, and I just feel like it's important I get your input too. I feel like such a baby right now, not the warrior Saturno I'm supposed to be, but..." I sobbed.

"Bells, can you take us back down to the ground." I obliged almost reflexively, and I was wrapped in warmth as soon as our feet were on the ground, my dad hugging me as tightly as he could. "You're still my baby, Bells. I've got you."

When I returned to the house with my dad, Carlisle and Jasper were waiting for us. "Your mother would like to see you, Bella," Carlisle said gently. "She seems to be adjusting to the shock now. She spoke to me more freely when I checked on her this morning, and she's eating everything Esme makes for her. I'm sure your presence will be a comfort too, Charlie. It will help her to see she's not alone in this unusual and overwhelming situation."

"Thanks, Carlisle," Dad said casually. His comfort around Carlisle and Jasper gave me hope. He and Angela were taking things in stride. Mom had suffered a huge loss, but maybe we would be able to help her through this.

"Bella," Mom breathed as soon as I entered her room. She set aside what remained of her lunch and sat up a little straighter in bed. "Charlie, you're here too. Are you okay?" Dad stared for a moment, seeing her for the first time since my funeral, laying there nine months pregnant.

"Yeah," he said, fidgeting distractedly. "Yeah, I'm all good, the uh⏤the bad guys got pretty close, but... yeah, I'm good."

"How are you feeling, Mom?" I asked, walking closer to her bed and reaching for her hand. Her eyes locked on my hand and she froze for a moment. Dad walked closer and squeezed her other hand.

"She's still our girl, Renee. It's okay."

Mom hesitated for a couple more seconds, then she finally lifted her hand slightly, allowing me to take it. She squeezed my hand experimentally, then she sighed. "After talking to Doctor Cullen⏤Carlisle⏤I realized how you must have felt... Everything happened so fast back in Jacksonville. I... I know you did everything you could to save both of us. Please... Bella, I am happy to see you again, of course I am..."

"Mom, stop, stop, you did nothing wrong. You have nothing to apologize for. I appeared without warning, you were scared and confused, and you'd just lost Phil. Everything is such a mess. I'm so sorry. I just... I don't know what I would have done if you'd been hurt."

"I'm okay. I... I'm not sure what I'm supposed to do with all this. Bella, I love you so much, but I'm so scared. What's going to happen when Mason is born?"

"Mason?" Dad echoed. "You're having a boy?" Mom blushed.

"Oh, I forgot to tell you. Sorry." She stroked her belly lovingly. "This is Mason Marcus Dwyer." If I were human, I would have choked. Dad did, just for a moment. He hadn't met Marcus, but he recognized the name of the rescued vampire king. I don't think either of my parents knew Mason was Edward's middle name. I kept that to myself.

"We'll protect you and Mason, and Dad, and my friend Angela until all this fighting is over, then we'll do what we can to get your life back to normal, or as close to it as you can get now that you're aware of the supernatural world. We'll figure it out. We just have to keep you healthy now; don't hesitate to ask for anything you need. Being a vampire makes Carlisle a better doctor than any human in the world, Esme got tons of practice cooking for me, Jasper can help with any mood swings or anxiety, and Rose adores babies⏤if I'm not around, just say her name and she'll help you with anything."

I heard footsteps approaching, so when Dad took over the conversation, I gave my mom's hand a gentle squeeze and slipped away. Jasper and Marcus were waiting for me in the hall. Jasper smiled and I automatically walked into his embrace. Being around Marcus made me nervous. I knew he was free and on our side, but I couldn't shake the anxiety I felt around him. Most days I still felt like a relatively normal teenage girl, and here was this quiet and observant vampire king hanging around. It was awkward.

"The venom guns are ready," Jasper told me, sending waves of calm and confidence into me. "We're all going out behind the garage for testing." Great.

"Humans can harm us with their missiles and bombs, and now we have found ways to weaponize our venom," Marcus mused. "These are dangerous times indeed, and I have much to learn after a millennium half-asleep."

"How are we testing them?" I asked as we walked. "Are we just going to see if the bullets break correctly? We'd have to hurt someone before we could free them from a gift."

"I volunteered," Garrett said as we joined the group out back. "I've always been too curious for my own good."

"You? Garrett, we just reassembled you! Whose gift are we using?"

"Mine, of course," Zafrina answered. "It's harmless. Kate is just giving her mate a little love-bite Peter can shoot."

Before I could object, it was already happening. Kate gave Garrett a small bite on his chest, moving aside while Zafrina stepped forward. I could tell by the change in their postures when both Garrett and Kate were swallowed by Zafrina's gift. Armed with an ordinary-looking paintball gun, Peter stepped forward and took aim. All was silent as every vampire in our alliance held their breath and watched. Peter pulled the trigger and bullet of webbed metal and woven plastic shot straight and true, striking Garrett's bite wound perfectly. The plastic within the metal shattered on impact and my venom splashed out, mixing with his. Garrett hissed, and only a second later I could see in his eyes that his vision had cleared. He turned to his unresponsive mate⏤Zafrina was still projecting and Kate was still blind to the world around her⏤and he started to grab her, clearly intending to carry her to safety.

"No, wait," Peter ordered, adjusting his aim. "Just a little sting," he said, then he shot Kate in the eye. She hissed and Garrett growled at Peter, but then Kate gripped his shoulder.

"I'm fine," she said. "Just a little sting. It's almost gone."

"And it worked," Char said proudly, having moved closer to Peter when Garrett growled at him. "The target doesn't have to be wounded if we can hit an eye or shoot a bullet into the mouth of our target."

Lysander stepped forward and took the gun, carefully removing a single bullet. He held out his hand and focused on the bullet for a moment. It floated above his hand, shot toward the trees, curved toward Garrett, hovered in the air, then it flew back into his hand. "How many bullets have you made?"

"Our first casings didn't work," Maria answered, moving to stand with Peter and Charlotte. "This is our third design. We have fifteen of them now." She turned to me. "We can make more if you like, Bella, but we will need more of your venom." I wasn't sure how I wanted to answer that. The guns worked great, but... were we going too far? Since I first met Edward, one thing had been very clear: gifted vampires weren't just annoyed when their gifts failed, they were deeply disturbed. In the wrong hands, a weapon like this could be used to conquer. If our goal was to liberate, surely there were some lines we couldn't cross. Maybe we could just use knives? You could choose whether or not to approach someone armed with a knife. The guns, Lysander's telekinetic bullets... wielding my venom from a distance didn't feel right. Five seconds passed, and I hadn't answered Maria. Maggie and Alanna were watching me; I couldn't lie.

"We'll keep that in mind," Jasper said, coming to my rescue. "Great work, everyone. Garrett, Kate, you two should go on a quick hunt to clear out that foreign venom." Bingo. With that little reminder, I found my voice again.

"Oh, I can't believe I forgot, even if I was human at the time. Felix," I waved the massive vampire over, then I turned to Marcus and choked again. I still wasn't sure how I should address him. Risking insult, I kept it simple, "Marcus. Back when I gave my blood to Irwin and Eleazar, they both said a hunt made them feel much better. I know it's been a while since you've... um... really hunted, without Heidi, but maybe that's just what you need?"

Two hours later, Marcus and Felix had vibrant red eyes, full to the brim after we found a drug dealer in the middle of a knife fight with a mugger. They had watched in interest while Jasper and I took down and shared a moose. We washed off in the lake and sat in silence for the moment at the base of the tree my dad and I had occupied hours before. Full and much more relaxed, I just let my filter fall away.

"I don't want my venom used in those guns. I'll provide more venom for knives, but I'm just not comfortable with those bullets. It feels like we're crossing a line."

"I agree," Jasper said. I fell back on the grass in relief. "I could feel how nervous it made you, of course, but watching Lysander play with that bullet... I didn't care for that at all. A part of me appreciates the advantage it would give us, but... it's like comparing a bonfire to a wildfire. There are too many ways to abuse the guns and bullets. I don't believe anyone fighting with us would go so far, but we have to think of public perception."

"I am relieved to hear this," Marcus offered quietly. "Our campaign against Aro will not end when he burns, but when we reestablish order with the respect of those who look to us for direction."

"An eye for an eye leaves the whole world blind," I said.

"Precisely."

"Um, Marcus," I said, sitting up again. "How would you prefer to be addressed now? I mean no disrespect, addressing you informally." I felt a soft wave of humor wash over me. Of course. Jasper knew I felt awkward around Marcus, but he'd enjoyed my floundering a little.

"I do not recall exchanging more than a few passing words with you back in Volterra, where my title held no weight, where I did as my brothers wished and kept to myself when I was not needed. Informality is fine until I earn my place again. Felix, you should address me informally as well. However this ends, nothing will ever be as it was again. We have been given a fresh start. Why not embrace the opportunity to change?"

"Cheers to that," Felix chuckled.

"Okay," Jasper said, clapping his hands together once. "I'll tell Peter and Maria the guns are out."

"Thank you," I murmured, knowing he'd also felt how terrified I was to tell the crowd no. He gave me a warm smile and pulled me closer. I rested my head against his shoulder and he absently played with my hair.

"How did you come to possess one of Amelia's arms?" Marcus asked. "I came across it in Carlisle's office."

"Aro didn't tell you, did he?" I grumbled. "Just another taunt. He had it dropped inside a cave Lysander lived in before we found him. Before I escaped, Aro told me about her: Tristan's mate, he scattered her pieces all over Italy to make Tristan fight..."

"My dear, Aro was bluffing. Amelia has a remarkable gift of her own; Aro would not discard her. He only took that one arm to deceive Tristan. Amelia is otherwise intact, hidden away in a small corner of the castle. When Tristan was destroyed, Aro and Chelsea were able to take control of her."

"What can she do?" I asked.

"She can reverse the change."

Silence. Even Felix was staring in shock, as shaken by this revelation as Jasper and I were. Felix was the first to recover.

"All of our laws would be cast aside," he said, shaking his head. "Even if her gift didn't threaten our laws, I fail to see what use Aro would have for her. He covets power. Why would he return vampires to their weaker human form?"

"I believe he intends to practice breeding," Marcus said plainly, his mouth curved in distaste.

"Breeding?" I hissed. "Of course. I can see it now. Change gifted vampires into humans, surely creating a gifted child, bite the parents again, wait until the child passes the immortal child age, change them too and boom! Unstoppable army. Oh! Oh no..." Had I been human, I would've been sick in the bushes. "Does he think he can make Saturnos that way? That some children might adopt both of their parents gifts?"

"No, no. We've poured over Saturno genealogies. There is no record of a Saturno being born to parents with any recognizable gift. The conclusion you came to first was correct. He wants to grow his collection of gifted immortals by any means necessary." I exhaled in relief, but then I noticed Marcus staring at me calculatingly.

"Bella, there is no record of a Saturno with gifted parents, but in our library there can be found four family trees containing more than one Saturno." No. No, no, no, no, no...

"W-who... Who else knows this?"

"Only Aro, Caius, Sulpicia, and Athenadora, in addition to present company."

"This stays between us," Jasper ordered cooly, his eyes Major-black and his arm tight around me.

"Of course," Marcus said, nodding once. Felix nodded as well, locking eyes with me as he did so. "I speak only out of courtesy," Marcus continued. "He will only be your half-brother, and it may be that your gifts come from your father's side, but pay close attention when he is born. Your shield was quite possibly active since your birth. If your brother is born gifted, you will no doubt want to take extra care to ensure his safety."

"Thank you," I said softly, my head spinning and my emotions too wild for Jasper to easily contain.

"Will you excuse us, Marcus? Felix?" Jasper asked politely, in the lower tones of his protective persona. "Tell everyone we'll return soon." Marcus and Felix stood and departed without a word.

Jasper swept me up and carried me a little deeper into the woods, where the trees formed walls and the foliage filtered out light and noise. It was a comforting swaddling, the gentle protection of nature. I could finally feel Jasper's gift seeping into me, calming my frayed nerves. "I have something to tell you," I said before I could become distracted. I told him about my morning with my dad, all we'd discussed, my fear of losing myself.

"Darlin' I'll never let that happen," he said, sitting next to me on the soft earth, running his hands up and down my back.

"I'm not developing an alter ego like you did, Jasper. I froze on that battlefield. If it weren't for Felix, we would've lost Maggie, and it would've been my fault, for not getting my shield up of all things. Then I stood there watching that gun test, hating it, but when they asked me for more venom I couldn't tell them no. I froze. Again."

"You're so much stronger than you know," Jasper said, easing me backward until he hovered over me, kissing me tenderly. "I know you're waiting for them to reject you, to say you aren't worthy, or that they won't listen to you, but they've all come to respect you in their own way. Even those who might not stay with us much longer."

"Mary and Randall?"

"Fickle nomads. If they do decide to run, please don't take it personally. It really is them, not you." I laughed. Jasper smiled at the sound, tracing my finger along my lips. I ran my fingers through his hair, tugging lightly when his smile widened. He sighed.

"Honestly, Bella, I think you're feeling this way because you already have lost yourself, just a bit. You've lost some of your confidence, but that happens to all of us from time to time. You're surrounded by vampires hundreds of years older than you and they're all looking to you. That's intimidating as hell, and it's the same with the pack. What happened with Billy the other day... Moments like that don't get easier. You've lost loved ones and killed enemies; you're bloodied now, there's no going back from that." Jasper stripped my sweater off and kissed some of my scars. "Even Marcus agreed: It's time for a change. Fresh starts all around. You just need to find the feisty girl who walked down that isle toward me, each of these scars on display, and drag her back out." Jasper stood and quickly stripped bare. I shimmied out of the rest of my clothes.

"You are a little lost," he said, lowering himself onto me, "but I'm right here with you. I won't let you get too lost, and when you do find your way back, I'll be there too. Getting lost isn't so bad when you know you're not alone. You'll never be alone again."

Jasper and I made love on the forest floor, time standing still in our little bubble, bodies entwined and cares forgotten. Then the bubble burst, and we plummeted back to the earth.

"Put your clothes on or come naked, but we need you now!" Irwin appeared beside us and we sprang apart, grabbing our clothes and dressing in such a rush I ripped my jeans in two. Satisfied that my sweater covered me well enough, I took Irwin's hand.

We teleported back to a chaotic scene. Leah was in the living room in wolf form, Angela cowering against a wall behind her, but the scratches on Angela's arm looked like they were made by Leah's claws. A chunk of flesh had been ripped out of Peter's arm, his venom oozing out over Leah's teeth marks. He seemed fairly calm, but he watched Leah closely. Char was hissing like angry cat, trying to get to Leah while Emmett, Rose, and Esme held her back. Kate and Garrett stood between Peter and Leah, keeping them apart. Carlisle stood near Angela, the only vampire allowed to pass. I could hear the other Denalis in my mom's room, keeping her and my dad inside, out of sight. Marcus and Felix stood off to the side, watching. Every other vampire was outside, watching through the windows, holding their breath against the temptation of freshly spilled human blood.

I amplified Jasper's gift and he sent out a wave of calm and lethargy strong enough to bring the nearest vampires to their knees. Leah sagged to the floor, but Jasper was careful to leave Angela and Carlisle out of the blast. "Is Jillian here yet?" I asked, leaping over Leah to help Carlisle clean and bandage Angela's wound. Leah howled, the sound full of agony and rage. I walked around to face her.

"Leah, I can't help you if you don't talk to me," I said. "You have to change back." Sedated as she was, Leah still lunged for me. Jasper growled lowly and took my hand, silently asking for more amplification. With my help, he poured peace and tranquillity into Leah until she was forced back into human form. He held her there, just conscious enough to speak clearly. She still glared daggers at me.

"That mind-fucking leech got Rebecca," she spat. "He's been controlling her. She brought a bottle of venom to the wake and spiked the food." Carlisle gasped. Esme sobbed. Angela squirmed until Carlisle released her, running over to kneel on the floor between me and Leah.

"How...? Was Rebecca caught?" I asked. Leah started shaking and Jasper gave her another shot of calm.

"Mom found her body outside with a note. She'd stabbed herself in the chest." This couldn't be happening. This couldn't be real. "'This is what happens when you don't keep venom where it belongs.' Signed Aro Volturi."

"How many?" I choked out, my vision darkening slightly in my rapidly mounting rage.

"Nine. Nine wolves dead, including two twelve-year-olds, you fucking bitch!" Leah slumped to the floor after that, completely unconscious under Jasper's influence. Angela was sobbing, actual tears streaming down her face.

"Take Leah and Angela back to La Push, Irwin," I said flatly. "Just to the border. Do not cross the line. Jillian is still there; she'll make sure they're safe. Angela," I said, taking her hand and helping her up. "Call me if you need anything. We can bring you back here anytime, but Leah and the pack need you with them now." Angela nodded, hugging me briefly, then taking Irwin's offered hand. He took Leah's hand as well and teleported.

Talking. There was suddenly a lot of talking around me, but it was like I was deep underwater, deep down in Lysander's cave. I didn't process questions aimed at me, not consciously at least. I shook off hands that sought to comfort me. I made my way to the garage. Finally, I saw them: all the knives, all the guns and bullets. Conveniently, there was also a blowtorch.

Hell is empty. All the devils are here.


	31. Solar Flare

♂︎(Jasper's POV)

I wouldn't call what I saw that afternoon an alter ego. Her eyes didn't change. Her voice remained the same; she just alternated between deadly quiet and fiercely vocal. By the time I caught up with her out in the garage, she was chucking all the venom weapons into a pile outside and setting them alight with a blowtorch. She then proceeded to ransack the garage for all the materials used to make the weapons. Anything with Peter's or Maria's scent on it was thrown on the pyre. When she found the syringes we'd used to collect her venom, she shrieked in rage, crushed the tubes in her hands, and threw them into the fire too.

"I think you're the only one who can safely stop her," Carlisle whispered behind me. I waved him off.

"Finally," Felix muttered, approaching with Marcus. "She is a newborn."

"This has nothing to do with that," I hissed. They walked back into the house.

"Her parents are asking for her," Rose told me. "Is there anything we can do to help?" I shook my head and she retreated.

Maria didn't bother stopping to speak to me. She charged past me, snarling, and she tackled Bella. I could feel no genuine anger coming off Maria, so I took the invitation to play along. I growled a warning as Maria rolled off Bella, dodging her sweeping kick. Maria growled back at me and locked eyes with Bella.

"You're soft," she hissed. "You'll get us all killed. Those weapons would have given us a great advantage; you let a few casualties break you."

"I am not broken," Bella growled, holding her ground."I'm waking up. I let you make these weapons because I thought it was the only way to keep my family safe without losing allies⏤there has to be another way!" Maria attacked again. Bella spun away an kicked Maria hard in the side. Maria stumbled but didn't fall. Turning, she sprang at Bella again. Bella did well, evading each attack. Maria wasn't fighting her hardest, but it was a convincing show.

"Aro's ruthless and clever, but even he wouldn't've thought of poisoning the pack if I hadn't repurposed my venom first," Bella said when Maria stepped back for a moment. "Leah's right to be angry with me; I'm sure she got an earful in the pack mind, so much the others wanted to say to me, but that doesn't even matter now. I don't care if everyone hates me as long as this ends with Aro burning. Go on. Hate me. I'm doing what I know is right." Maria started to advance, but Bella waved her off, deflated. "I hope everyone heard that," she spoke clearly, facing the house. "I meant every word." She turned to Maria. "And I'm glad you pushed me to say it. Thank you." She turned to me. "Thanks, Jasper, but just give me a few minutes please? I couldn't even ask Leah for names. I don't know who's dead. I'll try calling Jake or Jillian in a little while. I just... I need to prepare myself. Please."

Shock. Sorrow. Guilt. Anger. Hatred. Love. Longing. Resolve. Restlessness. So much to process, but as much as I wanted to help, her desire to sort things out without my influence was understandable. If she was going to follow her own instincts from that point on, space was essential. Just feeling someone else's eyes on you could make you second-guess yourself.

"I won't go far. Just call me when you need me."

I walked back into the house, Maria close behind me. I sent her a wave of gratitude for her effort. Maria smiled and murmured, "I told her I saw the same potential in her that I saw in you. I meant it. She'll figure out what she needs."

As we walked past Renee's room, Rose walked out positively beaming. Anticipation, giddiness, love, longing. Beneath it all swirled her usual cocktail: Wistfulness, bitterness, depression, irritation. There was also a strange hint of curiosity-tinged fear. I had a feeling this particular strand of fear had nothing to do with the danger looming. It was the kind of fear Bella used to feel when talking about her change, a feel the fear and do it anyway type of fear. Rose was making a big decision. Her eyes met mine and I bowed my head apologetically; I'd been caught prying.

Rose smiled and went to sit with Emmett in the living room. He, Jude, Garrett, and Kate were watching a game. Maria went to sit with Jude. "She's due in two days," Rose whispered excitedly to Emmett. "She's doing so well. Baby Mason will be perfect." I sat on Rose's other side and instinctively reached out to give her hand a comforting squeeze. It's what I always did when she was like this. More often than not, the happier she seemed outwardly, the more something was eating her up on the inside. That was when it hit me: Marcus and Felix had promised nothing would be said about the odds of this baby being a Saturno, but one or both of them had more than likely informed everyone about Amelia's true fate when they returned from our hunt. Amelia could reverse the change. Everything Rose had ever wanted... Given the choice, her decision had been made. Emmett caught my eye and nodded once. Whatever she did, wherever she went, he was going with her.

"Bella just took Irwin!" Alice ran into the room, her panic laced with anger. She contained her anger so no one could see it, but the panic in her eyes was clear. Nearly every vampire in our alliance came running into the room.

"What do you mean she took Irwin?" Kate asked. "Jasper and Maria were with Bella just a couple minutes ago. Did she ask him to take her somewhere?" The anger I felt in Alice intensified.

"No! After taking Leah and Angela back to La Push, Irwin was upset. We were heading out for a quick hunt when Bella ran up behind us, grabbed Irwin, and amplified so hard she forced him to teleport. That was fifty-two seconds ago, and I can't see either of them!" Before anyone could respond, Irwin appeared in the middle of the room. Alice leapt at him with a cry of relief and latched onto him with all four limbs.

"I had no idea I could be hijacked. I'm sorry, Alice," Irwin said.

"What happened?" I demanded. "Did she take you to La Push? Alice said she couldn't see you."

"I don't think we could have gone anywhere else. She didn't take my gift from me, she just made me use it. We went back to the last location I visited, which was the treaty line, yes. Before I could try to stop her, she apologized and took off across the border."

"You have to take me then," I insisted. No one objected.

"Be careful, Jasper," Carlisle said.

"I will. Take care of her parents."

I took Irwin's hand and he took me back to the treaty line. As soon as he teleported away, I found Bella's scent and followed her trail as fast as I could. I tried to push away any anger I felt. I had encouraged her to ignore expectations and follow her instincts, but this sure as hell wasn't what I had in mind. Then again... Phoenix. Maybe I should have seen it coming. Just like she'd run to meet James, she was running to face the pack alone, but to what point or purpose? What did she think she could accomplish here alone?

Anger. So much anger from so many sources. I felt the Major rattling his cage in response. Pain. Sorrow. Fear... Satisfaction? Wonder? Respect?

When I came upon Bella, she was standing in a small clearing, completely surrounded by the surviving wolves, twelve in total. Jillian stood across the clearing, a few feet behind Jacob. The wolves closest to me whirled around and snarled a warning. Before I could attempt to calm them, the wolf I recognized as Sam let out a sharp bark that sounded like a command. Sure enough, the wolves let me be and turned their attention back to Bella. Relaxing a little, I realized Bella's scent was strangely potent considering the amount of wolf stink in the small area. That was when I noticed the fresh bite mark on her right forearm, too small to be a wolf bite. She had bitten herself, removing the small chunk of flesh she held in her right hand, and in her left hand... a lighter.

"As I was saying," she said in a slightly shaky voice. She wasn't scared. She was sad, trying not to cry. "The last thing we can afford to do now is let this alliance fall apart. I burned all the weapons, the materials, everything with my venom. I'm sorry. I never expected Aro to stoop that low. I won't underestimate him again, and I swear to you I'll do everything in my power to destroy him. He will pay for all he's done... and it's only fair I pay as well. I know a chunk of flesh is nothing compared to nine lives⏤eleven lives, counting Rebecca and Billy⏤but killing me, killing anyone on our side just puts you all in more danger. Right now, I can only offer a piece of me. If it comes to it, I will burn for you." Bella kicked at the ground, leaving a small divot. She lit the small piece of her arm on fire, and dropped it into the small hole, watching unflinchingly as it burned to ash.

There was a rumble among the wolves, most of them looking between Bella and Jillian. Petting Jacob gently as she passed, Jillian approached Bella. Covering Bella's ashes with dirt, she addressed the pack. "'A wolf has imprinted on a vampire. A vampire grieves and burns for wolves we've lost. Our world has changed. The rules must be rewritten. Let this be the first page.' So say your ancestors, including those recently lost. I swear it on my own ashes. 'Remember who the real enemy is," they beg. 'Be empowered by this sacrifice. You are so valued by this group of vampires, so respected... Do not squander this chance to change the world. Do not seek to avenge us. Live for us.'"

That was how Bella found herself again.

A little over an hour later, Bella and I were back in Stowe. It was twilight in Vermont, and all seemed relatively calm considering all the drama of the day. Bella had apologized to Irwin and Alice profusely for jumping them. Alice was frosty for about a minute, but upon noticing Bella's new wound, she couldn't stop fussing over it. Back in La Push, once the wolves let me through, I had done my best to patch it with my own venom. There would forever be a thick, lumpy scar there, visible to human eyes, but it wasn't a gaping hole. For the most part, everyone was impressed when we told them what she'd done, Marcus most of all. She was definitely winning his favor quickly. Mary and Randall weren't so impressed. I think we all knew then that they were going to leave us. Whatever their decision, we had the wolf pack.

Everyone fell silent when we heard Renee groan in pain, her heart rate accelerating. We could hear a softer, quicker heartbeat fluttering. There was a barely audible pop, then the sound of rushing fluid.

"Ch-Charlie, get Doctor Cullen!"

Carlisle was already opening the door by the time she said his name. Almost every red-eyed vampire present ran outside. Bella started to run to her mother, but she stopped halfway to the room, doubling back and grabbing Rose's hand. After that, Rose took the lead and dragged Bella down the hall.

Love. Adoration. Giddiness. Exhaustion. Resolve. Love.

From endings, new beginnings. After death, new life. Exactly twenty-four hours after Charlie Swan teleported to Stowe and went on a run with Bella, Mason Marcus Dwyer was born. Bella and I decided we had to tell Eleazar what Marcus had told us about multiple Saturnos in families. After swearing to us that he would tell no one else, he volunteered to help Rose bring food and drinks into Renee's room. Bella and I followed him inside, Bella taking another turn holding her half-brother. Eleazar focused on the baby boy for a minute, then he smiled, meeting our eyes and shaking his head. Bella looked like she might cry from relief. Not a Saturno. No gift at all. Mason was a perfectly normal mortal boy.


	32. Saturn

♀︎(Bella's POV)

My brother would never be hunted as a Saturno. He had a shot at a somewhat normal life. He might even get to grow up in a home with two parents. The past few days had already brought my mom and dad much closer again; time would tell if they could really make it again. Their future was in their hands, or it would be, as soon as they were safe again. That was on me. I had to take Aro down.

When my parents and my new brother were settled, I sought advice from Marcus. While going on the defensive had seemed like the right choice at first, as it went against the crazed Saturno propaganda Aro had spread around the world, I had come to the conclusion it was the best way to lose the war. Marcus agreed. As long as Aro could keep us pinned down with random raids and dirty tricks, we were doomed. While it was an extreme and risky move, our only chance was one all-or-nothing siege. We had to take Volterra by storm or die trying. When we brought this plan to our allies, Mary and Randall opted out and fled. We wished them well and started planning.

"Obviously, we have to attack at night. Zafrina, you have to keep the humans in the city under an unrelenting series of illusions, so they'll write off anything happening around them as part of a dream. The illusions will also keep Aro from harming them; any Guard attempting to grab them will be lost to the illusions as well."

"Major, you won't like this, but you know you can't stay with Bella. Lysander, you need to morph into a Bella decoy. You'll stay with Jasper as long as the enemy seems to believe you might be the real Bella. Act like mates. Put on a convincing show."

"Kate, you need to stay with the real Bella as long as possible. Yes, Garrett, you can stay with them too. We'll all stay together as long as possible, but there will come a point when we have no choice but to split up. Irwin, that's when you'll take Bella, Kate, Garrett, and Marcus directly into the castle. Others will follow, but they must enter the castle first. Before it's over, wolves will be running through the halls of Castello di Volterra."

That was an exhilarating thought.

"So we'll win?" Garrett asked. "Peter, Alice, do you both see the same end?"

"No," Peter and Alice said in unison.

"My vision goes blank when the wolves enter," Alice griped.

"But they must enter," Peter added. "I don't know how it'll happen, but even with Zafrina protectin' the humans in the city, human blood will be spilled in the castle. That's all I've foreseen. The blood, the wolves... I assume that'll be the tipping point."

Everyone fell silent, looking at one another, sizing each other up. It would come down to self-control. Would the wolves be the only ones immune at that critical point? Or would their scent overpower the scent of the human's blood, allowing everyone to remain focused? Typical Aro, really, taking an innocent human hostage to save himself. As for the wolves... I glanced at my new scar.

Paul and Jared were dead. Seven more wolves were lost, but I didn't know them well. I knew two were only twelve-years-old, Kaylie and Brody; they both phased for the first time when Billy phased and died. Paul and Jared both left behind teenage imprints. Jared had imprinted on a sweet girl named Kim. Paul had imprinted on Rachel Black, Jacob's last living relative after the loss of Billy and Rebecca. If Jillian hadn't come along when she did... Jacob needed all the support he could get. Jillian wouldn't play much of a role in the final battle, and that was probably for the best. I'd already failed to save Jane for Jude. I'd never forgive myself if Jake lost Jillian because of me.

I made my way to my mom's room. Dad was in there with her, already wrapped around Mason's tiny little finger. I didn't want to worry them, but I had to see them one more time before I left.

"Bella, what happened to your arm?" Oops. My mom had noticed that immediately, Mason sleeping comfortably in her arms. My dad looked up from the book he was reading, concerned.

"Let's file that under 'things you really don't want to know,'" I said. "I'm fine, really. I don't even feel it anymore." Mom immediately dropped the issue, looking down at Mason. Dad closed his book and came closer. To his credit, he didn't ask about it again, not there in front of mom at least, but he did examine the scar closely. I could see in his eyes the moment he saw the teeth marks around the edges of the thick scar. His pupils dilated and he paled dramatically, his breath coming a little faster. I held his gaze and shook my head. 'Not in front of mom. Not in front of mom. Don't say it. Don't say it.'

I walked over to my mom's bedside, hoping to distract her until Dad pulled himself together. I bent to hug her and kiss her cheek before I sat down, bending lower to place the lightest of kisses on Mason's head. "Getting a little more comfortable here?" I asked my mom.

She smiled brightly.

"It's still a little unsettling⏤everything is so strange and different, including you, my own daughter. Still, everyone I've spoken to... You were certainly right about Rose. She's been wonderful. I do feel like I look terrible every time she's in the room, but I'm guessing that's how Charlie feels about Carlisle too."

"Hey!" Dad said in mock outrage. We all laughed.

"I used to feel the same way about all of them⏤scratch that, I still do. Everything looks different to me now. It's less overwhelming to look at them."

"It's different looking at you," Mom said. "You're overwhelmingly beautiful now too, but since you still look like you... I guess it's like looking at you through a different lens. My mind wants to focus on what's familiar. As long as I don't look at your gold eyes, I can still see my baby girl in you, and why would I feel bad about myself around my baby girl? I mean... apart from letting you get tangled up in all this alone... I just meant..."

"I know what you mean," I said "There's this vampire named Jane... She isn't here. We met a while ago, and she didn't really have any friends. Everyone I spoke to about her was afraid of her, but I saw something different. She's older than most of the vampires here, but she was changed very young, and when she let her guard down around me... Well, I became very protective of her very fast. When that happened, I saw her differently too⏤she really didn't even look the same to me anymore. She just looked like a little girl who needed my help. I wasn't able to help her at the time, but I'm going to try again." The tension in the room had grown thick, so I forced laugh. "I feel like I'm telling you I lost track of a kid I was babysitting in the mall." The tension broke and my mom laughed. Dad forced a smile, not buying it.

"I lost you in the mall once," Mom confessed. "I looked in the Disney Store first, then Claire's, but of course you were in Borders, surrounded by books." I laughed and shook my head. I had no memory of that day, but I believed her. That sounded about right.

"Well, I came in to tell you most of us are taking off for a little while. Carlisle and Esme are coming with us this time, but Jillian is going to come stay with you. Jillian's the other female Saturno, the one Jake imprinted on, and her healing power keeps anyone near her in good health. The house is stocked with everything you could possibly need, and you'll be able to roam the whole house freely. Angela's coming back here too, and all the Clearwaters are coming to stay with you until we get back⏤Sue, Harry, Leah, Seth." I turned to my dad and flashed my brightest smile. "Doesn't that sound like a party? Your favorite fish fry, a few beers, you get to act like you own the place. You'll be our housesitters."

"You can drink again, hun," Dad tried to laugh naturally. "It'll be nice to blow off some steam with some old human friends, right?" Mom nodded, but she was looking at Dad suspiciously. Dad was watching me warily. It was time to go.

I hugged my mom again and kissed Mason. "I love you. I'll see you soon." Dad stood and walked out the door before I could hug him. Following him out into the hall, I hugged him too. He hugged me back, but I could hear his heart hammering, his breath becoming slightly ragged. "I love you. I'll see you soon."

"Don't lie to me, Bells. Please."

I hesitated. "I love you, Dad." He closed his eyes and clenched his fists, drawing a slow, deep breath. "Dad, this is it," I said. "I'm sorry, but they do need me, and I want to fight beside them, for them. I... I think I'll see you soon. Alice and Peter see us making it inside the castle. They can see all but the very end, and it only goes blank because some of the wolves will be there, including Jake. Carlisle told you what Aro did. Edward, Phil, Billy, nine other young wolves, two of them were twelve years old. That's just what he's done to us; he's been doing this to innocent people for almost two-thousand years. Dad... This is the only way it can end." He hugged me again, with all his strength, his tears falling into my hair.

"Because of you, it can finally end... Bella... Well, of course I don't want you to go. You're my everything, kiddo. I wish I could come with you. I'd be damn proud to fight beside you, but... you've already gone somewhere I can't follow. I'll wait here for you... until you get back. You'd better come back, Bells."

I hugged my dad tightly enough to bruise. He didn't object. He kissed my forehead and I wiped his eyes, my cool fingers calming the red skin so he could put on a brave face for Mom. I heard the sound of feet hitting the ground post-teleportation. "The party's about to start," I said. Dad cleared his throat.

"I love you, Bella. I'll see you soon."

Angela gave me a tearful hug as she passed and wished me good luck. Leah ignored me, but Seth gave me a fist-bump behind her back. Sue smiled at me and promised to take care of my family. Harry bowed his head solemnly and wished me luck. Jillian squeezed my hand and reminded me we were all only seconds apart as long as we had Irwin. I met Irwin outside. Jasper was the only other vampire waiting for teleportation, waiting for me. Jake stood beside them in human form, along with two other wolves I hadn't properly met. I approached Jake slowly, gauging his reaction. His eyes were dark, but the faint smile he gave me warmed my heart. I threw my arms around him and he hugged me back, lifting me off the ground.

"We can do both," he said. "We can live for them and avenge them." He set me back on my feet. "Quil and Embry have officially become world travelers; they're already in Italy. Bella, meet Devon and Zane. They joined the pack when Victoria and Tristan attacked."

"Thank you for coming," I said awkwardly, struggling to maintain eye contact.

"Whitlock," they both said, nodding in greeting. Jasper stood a little straighter next to me; no one ever addressed me by my married name. I wasn't sure what to make of it, but Jake just rolled his eyes.

"Watching you bite a chunk of skin out of your own arm and burn it pretty much destroyed our ability to think of you as the same old Bella," Jake said, smiling. "It was easier to pretend you were still human at first, but those days are gone." I laughed. If I were human, I would have blushed. "Don't worry about it," Jake said. "You're a badass."

"And Jillian saved my ass," I added.

Two minutes later, we were in Italy, the wolves standing as far from the vampires as they could while remaining in earshot, the five of them struggling to stay in human form while we checked and double-checked the surrounding area for humans. As soon as we got the 'all clear', the wolves shifted and looked infinitely more comfortable in the mixed company. Thirty vampires and five wolves against an estimated fifty-two vampires inside those stone walls in the distance. The odds weren't overwhelming, but they weren't comforting.

Night had fallen, but too many lights were still on. As we were gathered near a pond, Benjamin was able to create a dense fog around us, and we waited. Lysander morphed into my own image under the cover, even recreating the small tear along the hem of my sweater. His scent changed to match mine, the floral balance ever-so-slightly off, but close enough to convince anyone not standing right next to him. When most of the lights in the city had flickered out, we advanced slowly, quietly. When we were within a hundred yards of the eastern city wall, Zafrina ran ahead with Senna and Alanna as her guards. They crouched low in the brush around the southeast corner. Zafrina cut the air with her hand twice, the signal for us to proceed. She had the human portion of the city covered.

"Forward," Marcus urged, and we marched toward the northeast corner. Approaching the city gate, we raised the alarm in no time at all. It was a carefully chosen tactic. Aro was too clever to send his entire Guard to face us, but we would surely draw thirty or so guards out, enough for one-on-one. Exactly thirty Guards came charging down the street. Peter, Char, Maria, Kate, Garrett, Tanya, and Irina ran forward first. They all dropped to their knees right before impact, grabbed the nearest Guards at the waist, and rolled as one, throwing seven Guards toward the waiting wolves. Standing beside them, Jasper, Lysander, and I helped the wolves tear them apart in seconds, Lysander maintaining his Bella-disguise.

"You are tiny," Lysander grumbled. "I should have spent a day like this to get used to it."

Turning to face the rest of the first wave, I saw a bigger problem: Kate was still on the ground. She was writhing in pain, screaming while Garrett fought his hardest to protect her. Looking up, I saw Caius and Jane on top of the city wall. Jane... Caius held her by the collar, and a thick blindfold covered her eyes, preventing her from seeing Jude. I threw my shield out around our group and Kate leapt to her feet. Caius glared at me, then at Lysander. "The shield, fools!" Caius growled. Six Guards vaulted over the group, attacking Lysander and me. Jasper tackled the Guards targeting Lysander, drawing Caius' attention. The wolves came to help me, working faster than Jasper and Lysander, which posed a whole new problem. Caius was whispering to Jane, turning her to face another target. If her gift failed while Lysander was still under attack, everyone would find know Lysander was the decoy. I felt a stabbing sensation as Jane's gift hit my shield, and I let it fall. Felix hit the ground, screaming. Benjamin was targeted next. The decoy strategy wasn't working at all. We were losing ground.

"Lysander," I heard Jasper whispering, "Fall back. You need a clear shot at Caius." Lysander could attack Caius telekinetically, giving Jude a chance to reach Jane and remove her blindfold at just the right moment. Our main attack force would make it through. I pushed through the throng to reach Marcus. Seeing my movements, Kate, Garrett, and Irwin fought their way over to join us. I amplified Irwin's gift, and we were taken inside.

Irwin dropped the four of us in Alec's room, expecting it would be empty. It wasn't empty, but we were shocked to come face-to-face with a newborn Gianna. She attacked wildly. Marcus stepped to the side, caught her by the throat, lifted her up and slammed her back to the ground hard enough to take her head off her body. Without batting an eyelash, he threw her head on top of a high shelf, turned on his heel and walked out the door, beckoning for us to follow.

"So this is Marcus," Garrett murmured wryly.

Alec's room was two doors away from Chelsea's, in the northwest corner of the castle. No sound came from the west wing. The north wing was deserted. Rounding the corner into the east wing, we were ambushed by seven Guards, the gorgeous 'fisher' Heidi among them. I grabbed Kate's hand and amplified, allowing her to drop three of our opponents before they could reach us. She, Garrett, and Marcus fell on those three, beheading them quickly before barreling into their next opponents, leaving Heidi to me.

I almost felt bad for Heidi. Though she was centuries older, she was easy to take down. Always the bait the Volturi used to lure in humans, it was obvious this bait had never been bitten. She attacked directly, her moves predictable. I danced around her, dodging every strike, finally grabbing her overextended arm and yanking her forward. Off balance, she lowered her arms go break her fall and I leapt forward to grab her head, pulling up as she fell. Fight over.

An eighth Guard, a male of average height rounded the corner ahead and came toward us at a moderate speed, apparently trying to move silently, though I couldn't see the point. Marcus, Kate, and Garrett were all finishing off their respective opponents. What was this guy thinking?

"They seem to be coming from the entrance hall, possibly the throne room," Marcus said calmly. "Let us proceed." Proceed? I glanced at Kate and Garrett. They were looking at Marcus. The Guard pulled out what looked like a small flamethrower, aiming at Marcus.

"Down!" I yelled, and without pausing to think I threw myself at Marcus, tackling him to the ground. The flame blast missed us by inches. Growling, I attacked the Guard, grabbing the hand with the flamethrower and forcing it upward. I was promptly punched in the stomach, and I failed to dodge a sweeping kick that dropped me to the floor. I wrenched the flamethrower away as I fell and I heard Kate and Garrett gasp.

"Afton," I heard Marcus growl. "Bella, shield us!" I threw out my shield just as the Guard grabbed me by the throat. Kate rushed forward, touching only his hands so I was released when she zapped him, falling into her arms unharmed. Garrett slide-tackled him and rolled on top of him, pinning him down and leaving the kill-strike to Marcus. After he took Afton's head off, Marcus stood and faced me, looking down at me sternly.

"When in doubt, use your shield," he said chidingly. "Project. Your powerful gift does us no good if you forget to use it in the heat of battle. Afton was completely invisible to us." I felt like a foolish child, but then Marcus came closer and gave me a small smile. "You are still very young, and a newborn," he said gently, "and your first instinct was to save me." He took the flamethrower from me. "Thank you, Bella."

"I know I burned the weapons," I said, eyeing the flamethrower and the bodies around us, "but I didn't think to ask what you wanted to do in this position. You didn't burn Gianna... Do you want me to bite anyone?"

"Not right now," Marcus answered. "Once we've taken care of Aro and Chelsea, we will consider our options. I expect you will face Alec on your own at some point tonight. If you wish to free him, by all means do so, but remember we must keep moving forward."

Thirty-two outside. Eight down in the east wing. Twelve left, including Aro and Chelsea, assuming our count was correct. I thought of the others outside. Had the tide turned yet? Was everyone okay? Was Jane safe with Jude? Jasper... I had to believe Jasper was okay. Surely Major Whitlock could handle this.

"Alec," Marcus breathed. The entrance hall, from the front door all the way back to the throne room entrance, was flooded with Alec's disabling smoke. Yes, I could project around the others and take them through it, but as soon as I took a physical hit, my shield would become unreliable, leaving Marcus, Garrett, and Kate frozen in place, unable to do anything. I had to go through alone and face Alec.

"There's no way this isn't a trap!" Kate hissed. "Alec is back there with all the others⏤as soon as Bella takes a step beyond that smoke, she's dead." Garrett put an arm around Kate, a supportive hand on my shoulder.

"Even if everyone else caught up, it would be our only sure way through," he said. "We can't risk her shield being compromised while we're standing in the middle of that."

"If we had the wolves, I could shield Jake back here and the others could get through," I thought aloud, "but I don't see any humans here. Do you?" The question was rhetorical. "Wolves will run through these halls when human blood is spilled. Maybe there's a human beyond the smoke. Maybe I'll be the one to spill their blood, to buy myself enough time to beat Alec. However this goes down... this part is on me."

"Draw him this way if you can," Marcus instructed. "Throw him this way. If you smell too many opponents waiting to ambush you, come back here. We will have no choice but to walk through with you in that event."

"I've got this," I said unconvincingly. Still, I stepped into the smoke and walked toward the throne room. I recognized Alec's scent, just beyond the doors. No surprise. His gift could only stretch so far. I couldn't smell a human; I hadn't heard a single heartbeat since we'd entered the castle. Though there were many other scents ahead, only two more smelled strong enough to be close. No names came to mind. Low-rank Guards I hadn't interacted with in the past. Three against one and Afton had nearly taken my head off... I couldn't turn back. The three vampires ahead of me would kill the three behind me without hesitation if my shield fell. "I've got this," I breathed.

"Then come in here," Alec whispered. I heard him moving behind the door. I jumped and kicked both doors in, but I didn't go inside. Alec had to scramble out of the way of the doors. Two Guards, a male and a female, stood several feet behind him. There was so much I wanted to say. Three against one? Have you no sense of honor? Courage? I remained silent and waited. Alec and the other two remained silent. Finally, I had an idea.

"Back up!" I shouted. I wanted Marcus, Garrett, and Kate to back up. To avoid giving anything away, I looked at the two Guards behind Alec. "Yeah, back up!" I turned back to Alec. "Have some self-respect. I don't need help fighting you. Do you need their help fighting me? You bit me twice last time you fought me," I said, touching the scars inside my elbow and on my neck. "Fight me again, just us." I extended my hand as if asking for a handshake. "A worthy opponent. Come on, act like it." Silence. I waited and waited. Finally, with a condescending smirk, Alec stepped forward and took my hand. He pulled me into the throne room, but that didn't matter. I amplified his gift with all my power.

"Move!" Alec tried to call out a warning, but too late. The throne room was filled with smoke in less than a second. The two Guards backing him up were lost to the anesthetic. Alec shook his head, overwhelmed by the feeling of his gift surging out of control. His limbs flailed in a futile attempt to shake me loose. Gripping his one hand in both of mine, I bit deep into his wrist, frantically pumping venom into the wound. Alec thrashed harder. Four seconds, five, six... Alec stopped fighting. I removed my teeth from his wrist but kept my hold on him, slowly decreasing amplification.

"Marcus, Kate, Garrett, can you hear me?" I called out.

"Yes," They replied.

"Alec is free. I've got him. I turned his gift on the other two Guards in here. Be ready to take them in three..." I cut off my amplification and the smoke started receding rapidly, pouring back into Alec. "Two..." Alec relaxed as he took control of his own gift back. "One..." Alec retracted the rest of the smoke. The two Guards blinked, slowly regaining their senses. In an instant, Marcus, Kate, and Garrett were on them, ripping them apart with ease. Garrett laughed grimly.

"Offensive amplification," he mused. "Who would've guessed that would become our greatest weapon."

"Our secret weapon," I half-laughed, helping Alec to his feet. "A minute ago, even I didn't know it would work. When I did that to Irwin, it wasn't so much a calculated choice as a stroke of luck in a moment of blind desperation."

"It's not pleasant," Alec offered, rubbing his head and shielding his eyes like he had a migraine. "I thought my head was going to explode."

"Sorry, Alec," I said, and I did feel horrible about it⏤I owed Irwin another apology.

"No, thank you," he said, looking at me with new eyes. "I understand it all now. I can see how Aro and Chelsea ruined us. Is Jane still outside?"

"As far as we know, yes, but her mate is out there with her," Marcus said. "We need your help, Alec. Where are the others? What is their plan?"

Alec shook his head. "I'm sorry, Master Marcus, but I was only made aware of my job: I was to keep you all from reaching this room. I do recall Amelia being mentioned⏤she's here, missing one arm, but otherwise intact."

We all turned when we heard shouts and howls of triumph. We could hear a large group coming toward the castle. Our allies were coming. There was another rumble, but it wasn't coming from outside. There was movement below our feet. "The tunnels," Marcus gasped. He turned back into the hall, running toward the staircase by the lobby elevator. We all started to follow, but as soon as we all stood on the floor Alec's smoke had blanketed minutes before, a bomb went off below us. The explosion made a hole in the floor the size if a small car, and the rest of the floor crumbled. We all fell into the tunnel bellow, and we were under attack before we could blink.

"Garrett!" Kate screamed as two Guards pinned her mate to the ground. Two more Guards attacked her, though her gift kept them at bay. Two Guards fell on Alec. Aro and Chelsea attacked Marcus. One male Guard lunged at me. He was about the same size as Felix, nearly as agile as Jasper. I knew I couldn't beat him. I looked for any way around him. If I could just get to Kate or Alec! It was no use. I evaded my opponent for a few seconds, but he managed to pin my arms to my sides, pushing down so I couldn't kick him without falling. We'd come so close! Nine left out of fifty-two! How had it come to this? Bombs? When did these ancient vampires start using bombs? While my opponent held me, someone bit me from behind. Fifty-three. Ten out of fifty-three remained.

"Bella!" It was Jasper. He was close. I opened my mouth to call out to him, but I'd become strangely dizzy, achy, and then the burning started. What the hell? Bites stung, but not like this. The male vampire holding me let go and ran to help the Aro and Chelsea. What...? I felt weak, but I struggled against the vampire behind me. Female. Tall. Her teeth were still in my neck, so I was afraid to thrash too hard. The burn was spreading, getting worse. I twisted my arms behind my back to grab her arms. My left hand touched her arm, but she pulled it from my grasp. My right hand found her right side... there was no right arm. A blinding pain lanced through my entire body and I screamed. I felt my venom boiling, my skin shattering and reforming, softening. It took days for humans to become vampires, but the reversal happened in seconds, and it was so much more painful. When Amelia finally pulled her teeth out of me, blood flowed from the wound.


	33. Fallen Star

♀︎(Bella's POV)

I heard the howling. Wolves were in the castle. I heard a roar of fury that announced to the world, 'Major Whitlock is here'. I was human again, in the middle of a vampire melee. All three of Kate's opponents turned for just a second, distracted by my heartbeat, by my flowing blood. Kate took full advantage of that second of distraction and grabbed two of them, zapping them hard enough to bring them to the ground, stunned by the jolt. Garrett finally got around his two opponents and ran to her aid, holding back one massive guard while Kate beheaded one of the two she'd shocked. Chelsea was reattaching her arm while Aro and Marcus continued their duel, their movements a blur to my human eyes. Black smoke billowed around Alec, disabling his two opponents and the two Guards scrambling after Garrett, but Alec wasn't in control of himself. I'd freed him from Aro and Chelsea, but not from himself. His black eyes were on me, his teeth flashing in the light spilling into the tunnel from above. I stumbled backward, colliding with Amelia. Why she hadn't drained me as soon as she finished changing me, I had no idea, but she looked as thirsty as Alec when I turned to face her. I was done for. Then wolves stared falling from the sky.

Jake, Quil, Embry, Devon, and Zane jumped through the hole in the floor above. Unfortunately, Quil and Embry landed in Alec's smoke. Free or not, Alec reacted immediately to the wolves keeping him from his prey. Quil was right next to him. "Alec, no!" I screamed, but he'd already wrapped his arms around Quil's neck. I ran toward him. The smoke couldn't stop me. When Alec crushed Quil's neck, I threw myself on Embry's back. Gripping his fur, I forced my shield around him, the effort making me dizzy. Regaining his senses and seeing his dead friend in Alec's arms, he attacked viciously. As soon as he began ripping Alec apart, the smoke dissipated. I had only just freed him, but I couldn't save him.

Cold hands ripped me off Embry's back. I only had a second to wonder why Embry hadn't reacted. I found myself in a darker part of the tunnel, being lowered carefully to the ground several yards from the bulk of the fighting, Jasper's body a physical shield between me and the action. Looking closer, I saw Heidi, Gianna, and at least three or four more Guards we'd torn apart. What? How? Obviously they'd arrived while I was trying to save Quil, unable to get to me through the smoke, but who reassembled them? Jasper tried to calm me, but he was too upset. He bent down to lick the bite mark on my neck, sealing it with just a bit of his own venom, wiping away the blood not soaked into my clothes. Behind him, I saw that Tanya and Irina had joined the fight.

"Secure," Jasper called over his shoulder. Peter and Char jumped through the hole and joined the fight. Looking up, I saw several of our allies standing around the opening in the floor above. Lysander, Benjamin, Tia, Carmen, Eleazar...

"Why aren't they jumping?" I asked

"There are more bombs," Jasper explained quickly, almost too quickly for my newly human ears. "The one that dropped you in here had a remote detonator. The others are fire-bombs with motion sensors. We didn't know about them because they were installed before our wedding, a security measure with so many attending. There are sensors twenty-five yards that way," he pointed behind me, "and sixty-five yards that way." He pointed across the fighters in the middle. "Alistair was obviously caught in Jacksonville; he was here, under their control. He and the wives, Sulpicia and Athenadora, they followed you through the castle, reassembling vampires you left behind. Half of our fighters are searching the castle for them and the other reassembled Guards, trying to keep them away. Bella, we saw you shielding Embry. Can you amplify?" Kate broke away from the fight and darted over to us. She took my hand and glared daggers at a Guard fighting her sisters. I tried to amplify... nothing.

"No, I'm sorry," I said. "I can't." Kate had already rejoined the fight.

"Going up, then," Jasper said, scooping me up into his arms. He ran toward the opening in the floor and jumped, but we didn't make it. I noticed a blur of movement behind Carmen. She and Eleazar were knocked aside as the figure pushed through them and slammed into us, knocking us to the ground. Jasper tossed me clear of the rubble as we fell, sparing me another cut. Landing almost exactly where I'd been standing a moment before, I stood to see Jasper scanning the room, growling. Everyone above looked confused too. Oh no...

"It's Afton!" I tried to warn them, trying to spot the vampire they couldn't see. He was behind me. He lifted me off the ground and threw me toward Aro and Chelsea. Jasper leapt for me, catching me and landing on his feet right in front of Aro. He set me on my feet behind him as he whirled to punch Aro back. Marcus appeared on my other side, keeping Chelsea away. Afton could pick us all off one-by-one while my shield was so limited. "Lysander!" I called, reaching my arms up toward him. "Jump!" Though crowding was an issue, he jumped, landing next to me. I jumped on his back and held on tight. "Find Afton. He's invisible to everyone else⏤short blond hair, about five-ten." Lysander immediately raised his hand and I watched as Afton flew into a wall, narrowly missing Jake. Afton lunged for him. "Jake, four o'clock!" Jake turned and bit Afton's reaching arm. Lysander aimed another telekinetic attack at Afton, knocking him off balance so he fell forward. The arm Jake held started tearing away at the shoulder. Holding my legs around his waist, Lysander leapt clear of the crowd, toward Afton. Upon landing, he let go of my legs, dodged Afton's defensive kick, and grabbed his head. "Pull, Jake!" Jake tore off Afton's arm, and the look in his eyes told me he could see Afton then. With a quick twist, Lysander took off Afton's head.

The Guards were losing. Their body parts littered the ground. When only Aro, Chelsea, Gianna, and two male Guards remained, Marcus brought the fighting to a stop. "Enough of this madness!" He bellowed, commanding everyone's attention. He turned to Aro. "It's over, brother. Your reign has come to an end, but this is not how a new and different era begins. For once, face me on level ground, with honor and clear intent." Was it going to come to one final duel? It might have, but there was one more wild card, a free and unpredictable vampire in the tunnel with us: Amelia.

While Marcus had everyone distracted, Amelia dashed around the piles of stone and stony limbs, wrapping her three limbs around Chelsea and biting the other vampire. Chelsea screamed as the reversal began, and it was a horrific thing to watch. I thought I'd felt my skin shattering and reforming, and that's just what it looked like. Another second, and then Chelsea was human. The remaining Guards stood frozen for a moment, looking dazed as Chelsea's power over them failed, but only their blind devotion to Aro had been broken. Their false memories were enough to keep them loyal to Aro, so I was shocked when Gianna broke away from her defensive position near Aro and flew at Chelsea, ripping her away from Amelia and biting her, drinking from her. She was a typical newborn, I guess. I'd clearly been spared from such a fate because Aro had specifically ordered everyone under his control to avoid my blood and venom like the plague.

"You have not seen madness," Aro growled. Ripping Chelsea away from Gianna, he threw her half-drained body toward the bomb nearest to him. With a lighting-fast kick to the side, Aro sent Marcus tumbling in the same direction.

"Benjamin, stop the fire!" I screamed as the bomb went off. The blast knocked me backward to the ground, and I was nearly trampled as the vampires and wolves in the tunnel scrambled out of the way. Jasper dove toward me, covering me, shielding me from the debris. When I could finally see Marcus, he was tearing off his burning clothing with one arm. His left arm had been taken off just above the elbow, burned away so there was nothing to reattach. It could have been worse. Even my eyes could see the scorch marks on the ceiling above him. Still watching from above, Benjamin had saved Marcus from some of the blast. Chelsea was dead, her human body so badly burned I couldn't stand to look at her. The rusty, sweet, rotten smell of her blood and burned flesh made me gag. I buried my face in Jasper's chest, breathing deeply so his scent cleansed my sinuses and palate.

Aro had been holding back. Bereft of Chelsea, he was a desperate man, a man possessed, and he fought like the fiercest demon from Hell. Jasper's eyes had gone entirely black, telling me the Major wanted to put this new demon in his place. Eleazar and Carmen had jumped down into the tunnel and they were trying to contain Amelia without seriously harming her or getting themselves bitten. While Kate, Garrett, Tanya, and Irina took the two remaining Guards down, Peter and Char were struggling with Aro. Seeing his Captain and Lieutenant struggle so, Jasper leapt to his feet with a roar and charged. I got back on my feet to take in the rest of the scene: The wolves were huddled together, clearly wanting to fight, but too too afraid of setting off another bomb. Lysander was piling rubble against the wall where the last bomb had gone off. Was the tunnel going to collapse on us?

"Tia, find Irwin!" I called. "Lysander, lift the wolves out of here! Hurry!" Only Benjamin remained above us when his mate took off. Marcus took over reinforcing the wall while Lysander put his telekinesis to better use, carefully lifting and maneuvering one wolf at a time through the hole and onto sturdy ground. With my eyes on the wolves, I missed the bodies coming toward me. Char was airborne and flailing, having been thrown by Aro. Marcus reached me a split second faster, bringing me back to the ground in a careful, protective tackle. I didn't flinch away when what remained of his left arm touched my skin, but the clay-like texture of his scorched skin made me shudder involuntarily. Peter abandoned his fight with Aro to grab Char, stopping her just short of the other sensor. It wasn't hard to see what Aro was doing. I didn't need Alice to tell me what was going to happen. Marcus shifted, about to get up and help Jasper with Aro, but I grabbed his scorched arm and he stopped, looking down at me with an indecipherable expression on his face. Was it surprise? Confusion? It was more than inquiring.

"The throne room has a drain," I said. The throne room was directly over the bomb. I couldn't see the drain in the dark with my human eyes, but I knew it was there. "How is it cleaned? Can Benjamin flood this tunnel?" Marcus' gaze snapped up to the bomb, then up to Benjamin.

"Behind Caius' throne," he told Benjamin. "Turn them all on and show us what you can do." Benjamin raced away.

Marcus scooped me up with one arm and jumped up through the hole, setting me on my feet in the room above. He gave my shoulder a gentle squeeze and jumped back down. Still waiting for Irwin, the wolves walked over to stand with me. Unfortunately, we were standing at the front end of the ruined entrance hall, above the bomb that already exploded, damaging the structure below. The floor didn't give out entirely, but a section crumbled away and Jake slipped, falling back into the tunnel. I would have fallen too, but Embry grabbed my sweater with his teeth, pulling me to safety just before the fabric tore. I heard the sound of rushing water and bursting pipes.

"Lysander!" I called, pointing at Jake. "Please!"

"Bella?! What happened?!" Tia had returned with Irwin, apparently without warning him I was human again.

"No time," I said. "Can you take the wolves in this form?" I asked, fearing the answer. Irwin shook his head.

"No."

I could barely see Benjamin in the dark throne room, but I heard a thunderous crash as the last few pipes gave way. While some of the water surely went down the built-in drain, Benjamin forced most of it out the doors, into the hole, straight down onto our allies below. It was a Niagara-scale waterfall. The water did have the desired effect when it came to the bomb; the sensor was activated, but the fire was immediately extinguished by the flood and the water absorbed some of the blast. No one was harmed by the bomb, but Lysander hadn't lifted Jake out in time. I looked at the thick, puckered scar on my arm and my eyes welled with tears. The pack had suffered enough. I jumped.

"Bella!"

The upper-third of the tunnel hadn't flooded yet. Carmen, Eleazar, and Tanya swam to the surface first, dragging Amelia with them. They didn't seem to notice me as they climbed out. I could see Chelsea's body floating on the current. Farther down, I could see Jake. I knew his wolf-strength made him a great swimmer in human form, but he was just too heavy in wolf form. I needed Jasper. He needed Jasper.

"Jasper!" I called even as I swam toward Jake. "Jasper!" Irina surfaced behind me. "Get Jasper!" I shouted, still swimming. Irina went back under without argument. I passed the scorched wall, pushing Chelsea's body aside. I'd almost reached Jake when I felt a sharp pain in my side; a chunk of debris from the explosion had cut me. Ignoring the pain and the blood, I swam as close to Jake as I could without being dragged under. "Try to shift, Jake, come on!" I urged. "I'm not leaving you. I'm taking you back to Jillian and the pack⏤shift, dammit!" Jake whimpered and tried to shake his head at me. "Jasper!" I sobbed, "Jasper, help!"

"Bella, what were you thinking?!" Jasper half-growled, surfacing beside me and pulling me close, kissing me fiercely.

"I was thinking about my friend and how much the pack suffered because of us, because of me," I cried when I caught my breath. "Jake can't shift back, and Irwin can't help him like this. Help him!" Jasper had been sending out strong waves of calm since the moment he surfaced, but I rambled on, panicked. A moment later, Jake shifted back into human form. I cried even harder in relief. Being human again sucked.

Jake and Jasper swam back to the hole in the floor, Jasper carrying me on his back. Irwin, Benjamin, and Tia helped us out of the water, the three of them holding their breath when they saw the large cut on my side. I think the relief of seeing Jake was enough to help the other wolves shift back. Irwin took that as his cue to start teleporting them out of the castle, out of the city. "Where's everyone else?" I asked when he was done.

"I took Carmen, Eleazar, Tanya, Irina, and Amelia outside the wall," Irwin said. "Almost everyone is waiting out there now, including Jane."

Kate and Garret surfaced before I could ask about them, lifting Quil's body out of the water with them. Quil died in wolf form, so Irwin couldn't teleport with him, but we could carry his body out of the city. A moment later, Lysander and Marcus surfaced. Having only one arm, Marcus had to toss Aro's head up before he lifted himself out of the water.

Outside the walls of Volterra, just before the sun rose, we buried Quil and burned Aro. It was finally over.


	34. Weightless (Two Years Later)

♀︎(Bella's POV)

Call me crazy, but I went through the burn one more time. Though the timing of my first change had been out of my control, It was something I'd wanted with all my heart. Saturno or not, I felt like I was born to be a vampire.

"We should head back," Jasper said, rolling off me. We'd finished our hunt as we often did. We could hear Kate and Garrett off in the distance; they liked to finish their hunts the same way. We spent a lot of our time with Kate and Garrett. So much had changed.

It took a couple months to repair all the damage done to Castello di Volterra, even with dozens of vampires pitching in. Most of the Guards we'd torn apart were reassembled. Marcus was forgiving, knowing first-hand what it was like to live under Aro and Chelsea's control. The wolves weren't happy with his decision, but with time they were able to let it go and move on. Only a few of those Guards remained in Volterra to serve Marcus. Many of our allies joined the new Guard⏤well, they'd changed the name. Those working under Marcus were referred to as his Agents, or as Agents of Volterra, or AVs. Marcus was simply referred to as Lord Marcus, not 'King' and never 'Master'. Felix, Amelia, Lysander, Maria, Alanna, Peter, Char, Carmen, Eleazar, Tanya, Irina, Benjamin, Tia, Siobhan, Liam, Maggie, Irwin, Alice, and Annie were Lord Marcus' new AVs. Afton gladly became an AV after he was reassembled. With his free will restored, he was actually very nice, with a boyish playful streak. Alec's body had been too close to the first fire-bomb when it went off. His head had been burned, so there was no saving him. At least Jane had walked away from the battle with her mate.

Jane and Jude had submitted requests for reversal. Marcus had implemented new secrecy laws to allow for reversals. Amelia was happy to help. Shortly after the battle, we found out she didn't drain me because she craved venom, not blood. Tristan used to bite himself so she could feed without biting and changing him. Aro had ordered her to change me during the battle because he thought one of our allies would try to drain me, making us turn on each other. Truly a desperate man. As for the legal reversals, of course Rose was the first to apply. She, Emmett, and Jillian were the first vampires to undergo legally permitted, monitored reversals. Marcus insisted upon observing the three of them for a few years before turning any more vampires back into humans, just to make sure there were no dangerous side-effects. Carlisle and Esme were torn, still deciding if they would sign up for reversal or not. Zafrina and Senna had returned to the Amazon.

"Come on," Jasper said, tossing me my clothes and quickly dressing himself. "Irwin's coming for us in two hours. Alice went all-out with this wedding; she'll never forgive us if we don't look our best when we get there." I groaned and got dressed. He was right. "Kate, Garrett, let's go!" He called. The four of us had basically formed a new coven. Sometimes we stayed in Volterra, sparring with the AVs. Sometimes we stayed with Emmett and Rose, or with Carlisle and Esme⏤we regularly visited my parents and my brother, Mason. More often than not, we lived like nomads. We'd seen enough war, endured enough drama. We had no desire to become human again. We hated feeling trapped. We were the restless ones, enjoying our freedom, seeking out new adventures, chasing the sun. Our new life was perfect.

The wedding was held at the Cullen house in Forks. My parents, Mason, and several humans from the Quileute tribe were in attendance, as were most of the AVs. The entire pack was there, in human form even in the presence of so many vampires. While Jasper, Kate, and Garrett went to mingle with the other guests under the fairy lights and flowers hung between the trees, I went inside and made my way up to Alice's bathroom, the largest in the house. Angela and Leah were in matching strapless dresses, the forest-green color lovely against their respective skin tones. My maid-of-honor dress was the same color, but it was one-shoulder, with a little gold beading along the neckline. "Oh, you look great!" Alice flitted over to me, pulling me down into a chair so she could slide a glittering gold comb into my braided updo.

"Where's Jillian?" I asked.

"Changing her shoes," Alice said, pouting a little. "She won't even let me help her with them. She said the shoes I picked out for her are beautiful, but too uncomfortable for her wedding." I laughed and laughed. I couldn't help it. Alice glared at me at first, but she finally gave in and laughed too. "You spoiled me," Alice said, smiling fondly. "You let me get away with anything."

"You know I love you, Alice." Alice beamed and hugged me.

Jillian walked in looking positively radiant. Her dress was a simple strapless fit-and-flare. No beading, no lace, but the fabric had a subtle sparkle to it, like snow in the sunlight. She wore her curly, fawn-brown hair down. Small sapphire earrings caught the light and made her cinnamon eyes pop. Her freckles looked like nature's glitter on her. Her look was so simple and pure, but so stunning. She blushed under my gaze and the look was complete. "You look amazing," I told her. She positively beamed.

That night, standing before a mixture of humans and supernatural creatures, a shape-shifting wolf married his imprint, a vampire-turned-human Saturno who could talk to the dead. Jacob Black, my childhood friend, married Jillian, a centuries-old woman with the appearance of an eighteen-year-old girl. Of course, Jake couldn't wait for the day he could tell his children they were descended from spirit-chiefs and pirates.

On the subject of children, there was one I rushed to see as soon as the reception was well underway, after giving little Mason a kiss of course. Rose and Emmett were sitting far from the dance floor, so Rose could feed her daughter as needed without feeling too exposed. She grinned when she saw me walking over. Emmett was bouncing his eleven-month-old on his lap, making funny faces and noises. The baby girl laughed with each bounce. Emmett shot me a playful glare and said in a sing-song voice, "Bella Rose McCarty really likes a party, but soon she'll go home and go to sleep." Yep, that little blonde baby was named after me, and Alice had seen she'd grow up to look just like Rose. Emmett had already become an excessively protective father, so her teen years would sure be interesting.

"I get it, Em," I said. "No big jumps, I promise." Rose stood and draped a blanket over my arms so her daughter wouldn't get too cold. Taking Bella Rose from Emmett, I looked into her gorgeous eyes and smiled. There was recognition in her eyes, but that was it. Little monster. Glancing at Emmett briefly, I looked back down at the baby in my arms and growled. Bella Rose broke into peals of laughter. The sound was a siren call to Esme; she and Carlisle walked over and sat down. Giving the baby girl a gentle kiss, I passed her to Esme, blanket and all. Esme cooed and stroked her hair, completely spellbound.

I danced with Jake once, then with my dad, my mom, with my little brother in my arms. I danced with Jasper for a while, but then I felt it again: The call of the wild⏤the urge to run, jump, roar. Jasper felt it and saw it in my eyes. We said our goodbyes and asked Jake for permission to cross the border, the four of us. Having heard us, Garrett and Kate were already waiting for us when we slipped away. The four of us ran to the cliffs. We left the pain behind, the anger, the guilt... the weight of the world fell off our shoulders. We were finally free to just... Be. Free to be, and free to go wherever we chose. That night, we chose the sea. We chose to jump. The water touched everything, and so would we.


End file.
